A Switch in Time
by IridescentPlume
Summary: After a mishap in the woods, Merlin finds himself transported 25 years into the future. Meanwhile, his future-self took his place in the past. They must figure out a way to get back to their respective times before their many enemies in the past and the future manage to take advantage of the situation. AU after season 4.
1. Chapter 1: A Midsummer Daydream

A Switch in Time

IridiscentPlume

Summary: After a mishap in the woods, Merlin finds himself transported 25 years into the future. Meanwhile, his future-self took his place in the past. They must figure out a way to get back to their respective times before their many enemies in the past and the future manage to take advantage of the situation. AU after season 4.

Disclaimer: Considering that this is fanfiction, I think it is obvious that I do not own any rights to the original characters, settings, plot lines, quotes, or anything else from the show that may be referenced in this story. Writing this is basically just a way to unwind from work and school.

Chapter 1: A Midsummer Daydream

Date: The summer solstice in the second summer after the marriage of Arthur and Guinevere

"Lavender, Mint, Plantain, St. John's Wort, and Comfrey," Gaius listed to Merlin as he scanned the shelf. He spotted two more vials that were almost empty. "Oh, and we're nearly out of Nettle and Shepherd's Purse." He turned back to his ward and frowned as he saw the young man stirring his porridge with a vague expression on his face. "Merlin are you listening to me?" When Merlin still did not respond, Gauis smacked him lightly on the back of his head.

"Ow!" Merlin said rubbing his head. "What was that for?"

"Oh, don't be so dramatic. I didn't hit you that hard. And that was for ignoring me. I'm trying to tell you which herbs you need to collect this morning."

"But today's my day off! It's the first day off I've had in months! Between helping you, plus the chores Arthur gives me, _plus_ all the extra work from preparing for the summer solstice festival _and_ making sure that nobody got murdered in the process, I'm exhausted. I need this day off!"

"Then the sooner you get these herbs collected, the sooner you can enjoy it."

"But Gaius,"

"These vials won't refill themselves,"

"You know, I might be able to do something about that," Merlin mused as he looked towards his bedroom where his magic book was hidden beneath some floorboards. That thought earned him another smack in the head.

"Don't you dare. You know how dangerous it can be to use your magic for frivolous things. Your magic has a purpose, and that purpose is _not_ to get out of doing your chores."

Merlin sighed at the familiar lecture. "Yes, Gaius."

Gaius frowned at him for a moment not quite believing him. Merlin sighed again, resisting an eye roll. "I promise not to use magic for 'frivolous things.'" Gaius raised an eyebrow. Merlin's lips twitched as he saw the expression. They both knew it was a promise that wouldn't last. "For a whole hour at least." Merlin added with a wry grin. Gaius gave him a stern look before shaking his head with a chuckle.

"My dear boy, what am I going to do with you?" He shook his finger at him. "One of these days you're going to find yourself in trouble that you can't get out of. And on that day, I reserve the right to say, 'I told you so.'"

"Gaius, I'll be gathering herbs by myself in the woods. There won't be anyone around for miles. What could possible go wrong?"

"Famous last word, Merlin," Gaius said drily. "Now finish your breakfast and get going."

Merlin shoveled the last two bites into his mouth. He grabbed the collection bag and headed towards the door. He stopped suddenly and turned around sheepishly. "Ah, what do I need to get again?" Gaius just gave him a look. Merlin winced. "Sorry, I'll listen this time, I swear."

Gaius sighed. "Lavendar, Mint, Plantain, St. John's Wort, Comfrey, Nettles and Shepherd's Purse."

"That much?!" Merlin exclaimed. "That's half the forest!"

"You wouldn't have to gather so much today if you had gathered everything I needed the other day, like I asked. You came back with less than half of what I sent you out for."

Merlin opened his mouth to argue but sighed and bit back his argument when he saw Gaius' raised eyebrow.

"Alright," he said, "Lavender, Mint, Plantain, Comfrey," he paused, "wait a minute. I can't get Comfrey. When I looked the other day, I didn't see any. I think the woods are all out."

Gaius raised an eyebrow. "The woods are all out?" he asked, his voice dripping with skepticism.

Merlin nodded, "I didn't see any nearby."

"They I suggest you look a bit further away. I highly doubt that the woods are 'out' of Comfrey."

Merlin sighed and slumped his shoulders in defeat. So much for his day off. He turned. He was just at the door when he heard Gaius call, "Oh, and Merlin?"

Merlin turned back warily. What could the old man possibly have to add?

"Take that basket by the door there." Merlin picked it up and looked at his mentor curiously. Before he could ask why, Gaius continued, "I've packed you a few things for lunch. Take your time gathering those herbs. But do try to be back for dinner."

Merlin peeked in the basket and saw some of his favorite foods packed neatly inside. He grinned up at his mentor who smiled in return "Thanks, Gaius," he said. Maybe he would get to relax a bit today after all.

By midday, Merlin had collected most of the herbs. The only thing he was missing was the Comfrey. But he didn't really mind travelling a bit further to search for it. The stroll through the woods was really doing him some good. It was nice to be able to enjoy the day without having to worry about polishing anything or stopping magical miscreants. There was something both relaxing and invigorating about the forest. He could feel his stress from the past few months seeping out of his body and being replaced by the peace of the surrounding woods. Apparently Gaius really did have Merlin's best interest in mind when he sent him on this errand. _Sneaky old man,_ Merlin thought with a fond chuckle.

His stomach rumbled reminding him of the lunch that he was carrying. He decided that it was time to find a nice place to relax and enjoy his meal. He heard the gentle, bubbling sound of a nearby stream. He headed in that direction. That way he could wash up a bit before eating.

He broke through the trees and saw a small clearing. A shallow brook wove through it, gurgling merrily as the water passed over rocks and pebbles in the stream bed. The floor clearing was covered with a soft, spongy moss with a few ferns near the tree line. In the very center of the clearing, a few feet from the stream was the largest Yew Merlin had ever seen. Merlin could practically feel the age of the tree from where he stood at the edge of the clearing. He felt himself drawn towards it. Before he realized what was happening, he stood before the ancient tree gazing up at it in awe. He couldn't quite put his finger on why he was drawn to it. There was just something about it that called to him. He hesitantly reached out a hand to touch the bark. As his fingers brushed against the trunk, he felt a gentle thrumming. He hesitated but did not remove his hand. It did not feel threatening. After a moment, he slowly pressed his hand all the way against it so his entire palm was flat against the mighty trunk. He closed his eyes and felt the magic of the tree gingerly brush against his hand, almost in curiosity. Then, as if it was glad to see him, he felt more of the tree's magic meet his hand and flow through him. He was soon surrounded by a warm embrace of the ancient Yew. Time seemed to stop; he closed his eyes and smiled. The basket with his lunch dropped to the ground, forgotten as he pressed his other hand against the tree as well. He could feel age, wisdom, and a general feeling of peace radiating from the Yew. If his eyes had been open, he would have noticed small golden lights like fireflies rise up out of the moss and the from the tree and fill the clearing. As he stood there, he felt as though all his worries and troubles were melting away. He had never felt more refreshed.

Unfortunately, like all good things, the feeling did not last. He frowned as he felt his peaceful moment being invaded. Something from the outside seemed to be trying to get in through the golden haze. Something dark and twisted pressed in against the light magic of the clearing. The magic of the clearing flared and tried to get the darkness to back off. It retreated for just a moment before charging with even more force. Merlin's eyes shot open in shock. He saw a golden haze surrounding him, and beyond that a red, menacing force. The red force reared back a second time. His golden shield faltered but held. However, Merlin could feel a crack in the defenses of his magical protector. The dark magic reared back one more time. Merlin closed his eyes and flung out his hand, his own magical instinct taking over and mingling with the magic of the clearing's fauna. The darkness hit his defense just as he felt the golden magic from the tree shoot into him like an arrow. He gasped in shock and was slammed against the Yew. The world seemed to disappear in a blaze of light. Then everything went dark.


	2. Chapter 2: A Rude Awakening

Chapter 2: A Rude Awakening

Merlin slowly woke, his head pounding. He sat up and looked around in confusion. He was in the woods. Why was he in the woods? He frowned as he tried to grasp hold of any recent memories that would tell him what had happened. He mentally ran through his morning: he woke up, he had breakfast, Gaius asked him to restock some herbs, (that explained his current location in the forest at least, but not why he was waking up with a headache). He frowned, trying to remember what happened. Obviously something went wrong in the herb gathering process. He gingerly fingered the lump on the back of his head as he attempted to figure out why it was there. And then, quite suddenly, everything came rushing back. His eyes widened and he jumped to his feet, which turned out to be a big mistake as a sudden wave of dizziness nearly made him fall over again. He flung his arm out against a nearby tree to steady himself and wait for the world to stop spinning.

After a moment, he straightened. He remembered what had happened. He had been attacked by … something. He had never felt magic quite like that before. It was strong, malevolent, and was trying to get at him in the worst way. But it seemed like he was being protected by something else. Until that too seemed to turn on him. But why? Why would an ancient tree try to protect him and then turn on him? He froze as a realization hit him. _And why am I still leaning on that tree?_ He snatched his hand back and stumbled away from the Yew. The clearing which had at first looked so serene no longer looked all that appealing to him.

He glanced around the clearing. He didn't see anything that looked particularly threatening, but then again, he hadn't right before he was knocked unconscious, either. He shifted, feeling incredibly uneasy. Something did not feel right, and it was not that he was just attacked. There was something else, an overwhelming sense of wrongness that he could not pin down. He needed to get away from this clearing as quickly as possible. He turned to leave the clearing. Maybe Gaius would be able to help him figure out what had happened and why.

His thoughts raced as he headed back to Camelot. He could not make sense of what had happened. Why had he been attacked? What had triggered it? Was it something he did or…? He frowned as an uncomfortable thought made its way into his mind. Did it have something to do with Arthur or Camelot? He grimaced. _Probably_ , he thought. Magic attacks were usually the result of someone trying to kill Arthur. Merlin himself was not generally the target unless someone was trying to get him out of the way. But that was usually only after he got in the way of someone's schemes. He couldn't recall doing anything recently that would draw unwanted attention to himself. In that case, why attack him in the middle of the woods? Was someone aware of his status as a warlock and Arthur's protector? He hoped not. That would cause even more problems. He quickened his steps. It was even more imperative he get back to Camelot and talk to Gaius.

As he traveled through the woods, the sense of wrongness he felt after he awoke only seemed to grow. The very air felt different and it was putting him on edge. He was becoming more and more convinced that there was a magical threat to Camelot and her king. He broke through the trees and saw the city standing before him. He carefully studied it. It didn't look like anything was wrong, but that did not necessarily mean anything. He broke into a jog to get to the city quicker.

When he arrived, he could not see anything out of place. It looked like it always did. The marketplace was as bustling as ever with vendors calling out, advertising their wares. Women gossiped with one another as they strolled among the stalls. Children weaved around the adults, running and playing through the streets. The whole place had a cheerful air about it. If it wasn't for the uneasy feeling that there was something incredibly _wrong_ , Merlin would think that it was a perfect day. Everyone else seemed to think so. Maybe Arthur was right and Merlin was getting paranoid.

Merlin was tense as he walked through the town towards the castle. He tried to relax but he couldn't. He kept glancing around him, waiting for… _what_? He wondered. _I don't even know what is making me so nervous. Well, apart from the fact that something just tried to kill me. But nothing new there._ As much as he tried to tell himself that he was overreacting and that it was quite obvious nothing was wrong, he could not bring himself to believe it.

A gaggle of giggling children caught his attention. They were watching a grinning street performer juggle 5 colorful balls. Merlin frowned. That in itself was not odd, especially considering that it was the summer solstice. But the performer felt a bit…off. Was this it? Was this performer part of whatever it was that had him on edge? He watched as the balls that were being juggled moved faster and faster until they were a blur. Suddenly the balls disappeared in an impressive display of blue and purple lights. The performer raised his hands above his head and what looked like several dozen butterflies emerged from his hands in a kaleidoscope of bright colors. The children gasped and squealed in glee as the jeweled insects circled around them, spiraling up to the sky and then disappearing. Merlin gaped. That was magic! In the open! He looked around. The kids were begging the sorcerer for more and the adults were clapping and looking quite impressed.

"What?!" Merlin exclaimed. His mouth hung open and his eyes were so wide that they looked like they were about to pop right out of their sockets.

"New to Camelot, dear?" he heard an amused voice next to him ask. A middle aged woman beside him smiled warmly, understanding in her eyes. "It can be a bit overwhelming, especially if you are from somewhere that doesn't openly practice magic. It takes a bit of getting used to, believe me."

"What?" He asked again. "But," he stopped, at a loss for words. "This is Camelot, right?"

The women laughed. "Of course it is. Where else would it be?"

"I have no idea," Merlin murmured. He tried to make sense of it but he could not get his brain to work. He _really_ needed to talk to Gaius. "Sorry, I have to go." He turned and ran to the castle. The woman shrugged and turned back to the show.

Merlin's thoughts whirled in his head. People were openly practicing magic, using it for entertainment even! And everyone was okay with that? He ought to be pleased about this turn of events, but the sudden change was unnatural.

Now that he was paying attention and knew what to "look" for, he could feel the magic in the air. There seemed to be enchantments on the buildings and in the very ground itself. Somebody had obviously cast a spell over the entire town. That must have been the cause of the odd feeling he had. While he did not object to this new reaction to magic, he didn't want people to lose their free will over it. He could only think of one person with the power to do such a thing. Morgana must be behind this. He pushed himself faster. He needed to find Arthur _now_! There was no telling what the witch might be doing to him.

He raced to towards the citadel. He tried to think of where Arthur might be. He glanced towards the training yard as he passed it. It was empty. He wasn't surprised. With a spell over the town, he doubted Arthur would be training.

Merlin decided to check the king's chambers first. He flung open the doors. "Arthur!" he called. He scanned the room, feeling a slight irritation at the state of it. Honestly, he was gone for less than a day. How on earth did Arthur manage to get his room this messy in that time. He shook off his irritation. He could complain later, once he saved the prat from the villain du jour. But first he had to find him. _Throne room_ , he thought. Honestly, he should have checked that first. If Morgana was responsible for this, that's where she would be gloating.

He rushed to the throne room and burst through the doors. The round table was set up. Everyone at the table turned and looked towards him to see what the commotion was. He blinked at them. He didn't recognize a single person sitting there. He opened his mouth to demand who they were and what they had done with the king when he was cut off by an amused voice.

" _Mer_ lin?" A man asked, "What in the name of Camelot did you _do_ to yourself?"

"What?" he asked, looking towards the direction of the voice. For a split second, he thought that Uther had somehow come back from the dead, grew a beard, and was sitting in Arthur's seat at the round table. He blinked and realized that, no, it was not Uther. For one thing Uther never looked that amused.

The man looked to be in his mid-fifties. He had a well-trimmed, blond beard that was streaked with white, matching the hair on his head. He had one eyebrow raised as he appraised Merlin. He seemed to be trying to hold back a grin. Merlin looked him in the eye. He recognized those eyes and he recognized that expression. And come to think about it, he recognized the voice and the way it had drawled his name. Merlin gaped at him.

"Arthur?" he asked in disbelief.

 **Author's Note** : FYI: because my summer schedule is super crazy, I will not be updating on any particular schedule. Updates will be based on when I have time to write. However, that being said, I do have the whole story planned out with chapter by chapter outlines. It should take about 21 chapters to complete. Although that number may change slightly if planned chapters get consolidated or expanded. On another note, thanks to the folks who reviewed. I appreciate it.


	3. Chapter 3: The Past Comes to Haunt

Chapter 3: The Past Comes to Haunt

A few moments earlier:

Arthur tried to stifle a yawn as two lords who were older than dirt argued over the tax prices of turnips. Turnips! How had the round table come to this? It wasn't even an important vegetable. He mentally sighed. He supposed he should be grateful. If they were discussing turnips, then that meant that there was nothing more urgent. In fact, there hadn't been any major threats to the kingdom in years. While peace was definitely a good thing, it made for incredibly boring council meetings.

Arthur glanced to the empty seat on his left. How had he let Merlin talk him out of attending today's meeting? If Arthur had to sit through an argument over turnips, Merlin should, too. At the very least, Arthur was missing Merlin's usual muttered commentary about the meeting. The man was the only person Arthur knew who could make a discussion about turnips vaguely entertaining. He held back another sigh and felt his wife's fingers intertwine with his own. He glanced to his right and she gave him an understanding smile.

Arthur glanced around the table. The only two people that seemed to be paying any attention to the current topic of conversation was the two people who were arguing. He opened his mouth to end the turnip debate ( _turnips, honestly_ , he mentally scoffed), when the door to the council room was flung open.

Everyone turned towards the open doors in surprise, (and not a small amount of gratitude for the interruption). Standing in the doorway was Merlin. Only he looked much younger. Arthur knew that Merlin had used magic to age himself in the past, the idiot must have found a way to make himself younger. And to top it off, he managed to find the clothes that he used to wear. He looked exactly like he did in their younger years, when they first met. Arthur snorted and tried to hold back a grin. He knew he could count on Merlin to get him out of this ridiculous turnip debate. But why Merlin would suddenly decide to take a stroll down memory lane, he had no idea.

" _Mer_ lin," he said, "What in the name of Camelot did you _do_ to yourself?"

Merlin stared in shock at the now middle aged King Arthur. He glanced at the woman next to the king. Gwen, he realized. Now that he knew what he was looking for, he recognized a lot of the older knights at the table as his friends. Although there were a few additions of varying ages that he did not know. He suddenly realized with a start that the older Arthur was saying something. He snapped his attention back to the king. "What?" he managed to get out.

"Having a bit of a midlife crises, are we?" The older man asked with a grin. He leaned forward, his elbows resting on the table. "And where did you find those clothes? I thought I had them all burned years ago."

"What? No, I," he stopped as his brain caught up to what Arthur had said. "Wait a minute, I like these clothes. What's wrong with these clothes?"

"I can't even begin to describe, Merlin" Arthur drawled.

Merlin frowned but then decided to ignore the comment. There were slightly more important matters to attend to. Like the fact that it seemed as though someone had cast an aging spell on the king and queen and half the knights and nobody but Merlin seemed to notice.

"Look, Arthur," Merlin said, "I think that there is something very wrong."

This got Arthurs attention. He focused on the manservant and straightened up slightly.

"For one thing you look old," Merlin said.

Arthur narrowed his eyes and Merlin rushed on, "It's not a bad look," he said quickly. There was a snort from one of the knights. He glanced towards them before looking back towards the king. He needed to explain quickly before Arthur decided to use Merlin as target practice.

"Look. I'm not sure exactly what is going on but I think that Camelot is in danger." He hesitated to censor his story in his mind before continuing with an abridged version of what had happened to him thus far. "I was in the woods gathering herbs for Gaius when something happened and I hit my head and,"

"Wait," Arthur said holding up a hand. He had a strange expression on his face. "You were doing what in the woods?"

"Gathering herbs. But that's not the important part. I,"

Arthur interrupted again, "For Gaius?" He asked.

"Yes," Merlin said, getting a bit frustrated with the insignificant interruptions.

The king hesitated a moment and exchanged a concerned look with the queen next to him. "Merlin," he said slowly, "Gaius is gone."

Merlin froze for a second. "What…what do you mean, 'gone?'" He felt dread in the pit of his stomach. He wasn't sure he wanted an answer

"Gaius is dead. He has been for years."

Merlin just stared at Arthur. Arthur kept talking but Merlin didn't hear him. _Gaius is dead_ , was repeated over and over in his mind. "impossible," he whispered.

"Merlin," Arthur started.

"No. You're wrong. Gaius is fine. I just saw him this morning."

Arthur and Gwen glanced at each other, concerned for their friend. Arthur stood up and made his way over to Merlin; Gwen followed her husband.

"Merlin," Gwen said.

"No. He's fine. It's this spell. It's making you think that he's dead, but he's not. He can't be."

"Merlin," Arthur tried again. But he was once again interrupted by the distraught warlock.

"No. Don't you see. Someone cast some sort of spell or something. Over the whole town. Everything is different. Every _one_ is different. But we'll fix it. We'll find a way to make everything go back to normal." He gave Arthur a pleading look. The room was silent for a minute.

"Alright," Arthur said carefully, "you're right. I think someone did cast a spell. But I don't think Camelot was the target. Think about it Merlin. Which is more likely, that a spell has been cast over an entire city, or that a spell has been cast on just you?"

Merlin opened his mouth to speak, but then thought for a moment and then closed it again. He frowned, thinking. "Are you saying that I'm imagining all this? Maybe I'm still unconscious in the woods and this is some sort of dream?"

"Dream about me often do you? I have to say I'm a bit disturbed by that thought," Arthur said drily. Gwen elbowed him in the ribs.

"Not helping," she muttered.

Arthur cleared his throat. "I suppose while it's possible that this is all some elaborate dream that your addled brain made up, I don't believe that to be true."

"And how would you know if this was a dream or not?" Merlin asked.

Arthur studied him for a minute and then smacked him upside the head. Gwen gave her husband an exasperated look.

"Ow!" Merlin exclaimed. "What was that for?"

"Did that feel real?"

Merlin rubbed his head and glared at the king, not answering. "I thought so," Arthur said with a smirk. "Now that we know it's not a dream, perhaps we should consider an alternative scenario. Here is what I think happened. You decided to try one of your 'experiments' and, like an idiot, thought it was a good idea to try to make yourself look younger. The spell backfired, and while you did make yourself look younger, you also managed to erase half of your memories." He raised an eyebrow. "Sound plausible?" he asked.

Merlin frowned in thought. It actually sort of did. Heaven knows he bungled more than one spell. There was only one problem with that. Arthur wasn't supposed to know about his magic. He paled. "S-spell?" he asked. "I don't, I mean, I can't…"

"Oh here we go," Arthur said, throwing up his hands, "we've reverted back to your lying days."

Merlin winced slightly.

"It's okay, Merlin," Gwen said. "We know. We've known for years now. In fact, magic isn't even illegal anymore."

Merlin stared at her. "it, what?" he asked. "You… are you sure?"

Gwen smiled at him. "yes," she said. "Magic is free now. You don't have to be afraid anymore."

Merlin stared at her, nearly forgetting to breathe. "Are you sure this isn't a dream?" he whispered. His mind was having trouble processing this information.

"Yes," Arthur said firmly. The king looked at his oldest friend and felt a surge of guilt as he was reminded just how difficult it had been for Merlin back in the early days of their friendship. But he had made a promise long ago that he would never again do anything to cause Merlin fear or pain. And it was a promise he intended to keep. "We should go back to your workshop and find out what exactly you were up to in there. I'm sure we can figure out a way to reverse whatever it is you did." He glanced towards the round table, trying to catch the eye of a druid woman, Olwen, he had appointed to the council. They would probably need her help to fix this. But she was staring at Merlin with narrowed eyes, as though he was some sort of puzzle she was trying to figure out.

Merlin didn't seem to notice. "I have a workshop?" Merlin wondered. Then he thought of something. "But wait, I woke up in the woods after being attacked by some strange force. Whatever happened, I don't think I did it to myself. I was actually going to ask Gaius…" Merlin trailed off as a wave of grief hit him. He cleared his throat and pushed through it. "I'm not sure that your theory is correct, Arthur."

"Wait a moment," Sir Leon said. He looked at Merlin and then back towards the king. "How can we be sure that this is really Merlin. How do we know this is not some imposter pretending to be Merlin in order to get close to the king?" He looked around at the other members of the table.

Merlin tensed. If they suddenly decided that he was not who he said he was, he might be forced to make a hasty exit. And it would make his job about ten times harder than it already was.

"If that was the case," Gwain said, "then the imposter would want to look like Merlin as he is now, not twenty years ago."

"Maybe there was a problem with the spell, or he is using this as an excuse to be lacking certain memories," Leon answered. Gwain frowned but before he could say anything else, the other knight held up his hand and glanced towards Merlin apologetically. "I mean no offense," he said. "I just want to be certain."

"That is probably wise, Sir Leon," Arthur said. "Sorcerers have disguised themselves to infiltrate the citadel in the past." He turned to Merlin, "Alright then, prove that you are Merlin."

Merlin stared at him, a bit at a loss. "How am I supposed to do that?"

"If you really are Merlin, I'm certain you can figure out something."

Merlin frowned and then said the first thing that popped into his head. "You're a clotpole."

Gwain barked out a laugh and a few of the older knights grinned, although some of the younger and newer members of the round table exchanged slightly bewildered glances. Arthur rolled his eyes. "Really? That's what you came up with for proof?"

"Would you have preferred dollophead?" Merlin asked. At Arthurs unamused scowl Merlin crossed his arms. "Well, if you wanted something specific, you should have said so."

"You did kind of walk right into that one, princess," Gwain said.

"Oh, not you, too." Arthur said.

"You know," Elyan said, "I almost forgot about that insult of Merlin's."

"But other's may not have. It would not be too hard to copy it if he really was an imposter," Percival said.

"No," Athur said. "It really is Merlin. I don't know how I can tell, but I know it's him."

"There is another way to know for certain," a woman said. She was the only woman at the round table besides Gwen. She was an older woman with graying hair. Merlin did not recognize her.

The women met Merlin's eyes. ' _Emrys_ ,' she said directly into his head.

He blinked in surprise. 'Y _ou're a druid_ ,' he replied back to her in the same manner.

 _Yes_ , she said. ' _My name is Olwen_.'

'B _ut, what are you doing here?'_ he asked. ' _I didn't think Arthur trusted the druids enough to appoint one a position on his council.'_

She smiled, ' _Much has changed. You will see in time.'_

Merlin frowned at that comment, ' _are you responsible for what is going on?'_ he asked her. Although as he said it, he had a feeling that he knew she was not. It did not seem like druid magic to him.

 _'No_ ,' she said.

Before he could respond, the king cleared his throat, "I thought I made it clear that it is rude to do that talking without speaking thing around other people."

"Ah, but your majesty," Olwen said with a smirk, "how else are we supposed to talk about you behind your back?"

"You can do it when I leave the room, like a normal person," he responded drily.

"Mm," She said, giving a noncommittal hum. "Well the good news is, that I was able to confirm his identity once and for all. This truly is Emrys."

"Good, but I already knew that," Arthur said. Merlin quickly glanced at Arthur, now he knew about the name 'Emrys', too?

"Furthermore, I think I have an explanation for his current appearance and lack of memories," Olwen continued.

"Oh?" Arthur said. "Then please elaborate."

"He has no memories of recent events because one cannot remember what has not yet happened."

"Must you always speak in riddles?" Arthur said with a sigh.

"No, but it's fun," the druid said, smiling.

Arthur pinched the bridge of his nose. Sometimes he very much regretted making magic legal. Dealing with magic users tended to give him a headache. He was much happier when the only headache he got was from Merlin.

"'Not happened?'" Gwen said. "What do you mean by that?"

"I believe this Merlin is somehow from the past," Olwen explained.

There were sounds of surprise and disbelief around the table. Arthur frowned. "Is such a thing truly possible? Magic can be used to travel through time itself?"

"Not usually. There are tales of ancient magic users accomplishing such things. However, those arts were lost long ago. I do not think a typical sorcerer is capable of such a feat any longer." Her lips twitched, "Although, Merlin is not exactly a typical sorcerer." Merlin frowned, his brow creased in thought.

"No," Arthur said, with a smirk in the warlock's direction. "Merlin isn't exactly a typical anything."

Merlin ignored the jibe and addressed Olwen. "You think I'm from the past?" he asked. "So in other words, I'm in the future?"

"Yes," she said.

"And magic is legal?" Merlin asked.

She smiled, "yes."

He blinked at her and then a wide grin split his face. It had finally sunk in. Magic was legal and that meant that he would succeed in his destiny. He felt as though a heavy burden had been lifted from his shoulders. He laughed, "That's brilliant!" he said.

"Yes, it is, isn't it?" the druid said. "But perhaps you can celebrate later. After all it hasn't happened for you yet."

"But it will," he said. "Knowing that is enough for me."

"Perhaps. But it will not happen if you do not get back to your own time," she reminded him.

"Right," Merlin said, sobering up.

"Now, tell me what happened. If we can figure out how you got here, we should be able to find a way to get you back where you belong."

He nodded and explained everything. He left nothing out which felt amazing.

Once he finished, everyone was silent for a moment. "You said it was a Yew tree?" the druid asked.

"Yes," he said. "I'm sure of it."

Yes," she said, "based on what you said, I'm sure of it, too. Yews are known for containing very powerful magic. They have often been associated with some of the strongest protection spells. Perhaps sending you here was the tree's way of protecting you. Mixed with your own potent magic, it would not be that difficult to achieve." She hesitated and then continued. "One concern I have is that we do not know what the Yew was protecting you from." She looked around the table. "We must be vigilant. Merlin's safety must be a priority." She turned back to the young warlock. "Until we know more about the origin of the attack, you need to be exceedingly careful. None of us can risk anything happening to you. I will do some research and try to see if I can find records of magic like you described."

She paused for a moment and then looked him straight in the eye. "One more thing, it is dangerous for people to know their own futures. Seers have often been led astray by knowledge of what is to come. Being in the future is no doubt far more dangerous than any mere vision. One mistake and you could potentially change the course of history." She turned her gaze to the king, the queen, and the knights, looking each person in the eye. "Trying to fix one moment of pain or suffering could have repercussions that bring destruction on the whole kingdom, although it is impossible to guess what these consequences might be. For that reason, I think it would be a grave mistake to try to change anything. Therefore, it is imperative that Merlin does not find out too much about his future while he is here. The less he knows the better." She turned back to him and contemplated him for a minute. "We should figure out exactly when you are from so we know what we can and cannot talk about around you."

Merlin sighed. Now everyone was going to be walking on eggshells around him.

"Well Merlin," Arthur said, "What are some recent events that happened so we can get an idea of when you are from."

Merlin thought. "Well, I was gathering herbs for Gaius today," he started.

Arthur interrupted with an eye roll. "Oh, thank you, _Mer_ lin," he said. "That's _very_ helpful. Because you've only ever done that the one time. I know _exactly_ what day that was."

Merlin shot him an unamused glare.

"We need a _big_ event Merlin. Something memorable. Not something that happens on a regular basis. Think of things like weddings, or births, or recent battles or attacks," Arthur continued.

Merlin frowned. "Recent attacks?" he asked. "I thought you said something that _didn't_ happen every day."

Arthur rolled his eyes. "very funny," he said.

"Actually, it's been fairly quiet. The only recent attacks were pretty small and I don't even think you were aware of them," Merlin said thoughtfully. Arthur frowned but Merlin didn't seem to notice and continued talking. "I suppose the most recent event was your wedding. But that was last spring."

"Our wedding?" Arthur asked. He nodded. "Alright, we can work with that."

"If our wedding was last year," Gwen said, "then that means that you are from 25 years in the past." She smiled at the memories. "So much has happened in that time."

"Maybe so," Merlin said. He crossed his arms and scowled a bit, "but apparently you're not allowed to talk about it with me or the city will explode."

Gwen smiled and a few of the knights chuckled.

"We should also probably be sure to warn your future self that you're here, too," Gwain said. "Although, it might be fun to literally talk to yourself."

"No." the druid woman said. "He must not go anywhere near the current Merlin. Who knows what kind of damage that would do?"

"Yes," Arthur agreed, "dealing with one of you at a time is bad enough."

"Where is the current you, anyway?" Gwain asked. He looked around the room as though the older Merlin was going to jump out from behind a tapestry.

"He went out with Kessa for," Gwen stopped suddenly and looked at the younger Merlin, who was looking at her with curiosity "I mean…" she hesitated, not quite sure how to finish the sentence. She sighed, "this is going to be harder than I thought."

"Where did they go?" Arthur asked.

"Who's Kessa?" Merlin asked.

"The forest," Gwen answered her husband, ignoring Merlin's question. Merlin groaned internally. He was already fed up with the cut off sentences, unanswered questions, and hidden meanings behind everything. This was going to get very old, very quickly.

Arthur nodded and walked over to the round table, standing in front of his chair. He addressed the table, "I hope you all realize what an incredibly sensitive situation we have here. Until further notice, no one outside of this room is to know what has transpired here today. We must keep this a secret until we are able to correct the situation. Galahad, Bors, Geraint, Lamorak, I would like you four to ride out and try to find Merlin." He paused, "the current Merlin," he said. He hoped this did not get too confusing. "tell him what happened and bring him back here. Meet with Guinevere before you leave. She may have more details on where precisely you might find him."

The younger Merlin looked between Arthur, Gwen, and the knights, burning with curiosity. He couldn't help but wonder about his future self.

"Merlin," Arthur said, "I would like you to come with me. We need to think of some sort of cover story for you. Maybe a disguise of some sort." He turned back to the rest of the group. "I will alert you as to his cover story once we have it figured out." Arthur hesitated and then gave a resigned sigh, "Gwain, you've always been good at coming up with this sort of thing. I think that you should come help us, too." Gwain grinned and winked at Merlin. Merlin groaned. He had a feeling he was not going to like whatever the knight came up with.


	4. Chapter 4: Two birds with one spell

Chapter 4: Two birds with One Spell

 _Meanwhile with the future Merlin:_

Merlin just finished setting out the picnic lunch when he heard a loud splash coming from the nearby stream. He looked up in alarm but was immediately relieved to see his six-year-old daughter unharmed, sitting in the water with a slightly bewildered look on her face. He sighed in fond exasperation and stood up. He walked over to the sopping wet child. He stood by the bank and looked down on her, trying to make his face look stern.

"Kessa," he said firmly, "I thought I told you that you were not allowed to play in the water until after we ate lunch."

She looked up at her father with wide eyes. "But I'm not playing in the water," she said, still sitting in the stream.

Merlin raised an eyebrow. "You're not playing in the water?" he asked.

"No," she said shaking her head.

"Mm-hm," he said. He crossed his arms and looked at her. "Are you sure? Because from here, it looks an awful lot like you're in the water."

"Yes," she said, "but I'm not playing. I'm just sitting."

"Kessa," he said in warning.

"It wasn't my fault, Papa. I fell."

"You fell?"

"Yes," she said. "I couldn't help it. I was just standing by the bank and I fell. It's very slippery."

"I see," he said. "And how did you end up in the middle of the stream? That's a very long way to fall."

The young girl looked around, as though noticing her surroundings for the first time. "Oh!" Merlin watched her as she tried to think of a good excuse. Finally she sighed and her shoulders slumped. "There was a frog. I wanted to catch him." she looked at him, her lower lip trembled and she gave him a big, doe-eyed look. "Are you angry?"

He sighed. The girl had him wrapped around her little finger and she knew it. He took a step in the stream and held out a hand to her. She stood up, grasped his hand, and carefully made her way over the slippery stones. "When I tell you to do something, or not to do something, there's usually a reason," he said once she was out of the stream. He knelt down so he was eye level with her. "It's very important that you listen to me. The water can sometimes be deeper or faster than it looks. You could have been hurt. Do you understand?"

She nodded. "Yes, Papa."

"And that wouldn't be a very good way to spend your birthday, now would it?" The birthday girl shook her head.

Merlin smiled. "Good. Ready for lunch now?"

"Yes," she said with a grin and then gave him a big hug.

"Ack!" he exclaimed in mock horror. "You're all wet! It's a good thing I know an easy way to fix that." His eyes flashed and their clothes dried instantly.

She giggled. "That tickles," she said.

He grinned at her. "It does?" he asked. "How about this?" He scooped her into his arms and started tickling her belly. She gave a delighted shriek and tried to pull away. "Stop!" she said laughing, "Papa, stop!"

Suddenly Merlin froze. His head shot up and he looked around the forest warily. He felt a strange shift in the air. The surrounding magic started churning slowly at first, but increasing in intensity, like the waves at the start of a storm at sea. He clutched his daughter tighter to him. He did not know what was causing this, but it could not be good. His first priority right now was to protect her from whatever this was.

"Papa?" the girl asked, sensing her father's tenseness but not sure exactly what caused him to stop playing.

"Shh," he said. He glanced around the clearing. Suddenly he was hit with a stabbing pain. He gasped as he felt as though his insides were being ripped out of him. He fell to the ground, gripping his daughter tightly to him. He struggled to stay conscious as every instinct screamed to protect his daughter. It was a losing battle and he was vaguely aware of Kessa crying before everything went black.

Pain was the first thing Merlin was aware of as the haze of unconsciousness slowly lifted. His head was throbbing. Muscles he did not even know existed were aching, his skin burned, and he felt a heaviness on his chest that was making it difficult to breathe. He felt like he'd gone three rounds with a flock of angry griffons and lost. Badly.

He lay still for a moment, trying to get his bearings and figure out what happened. After a second, events came rushing back to him and he gasped, his eyes flew open to search for his daughter. It didn't take him long to find her. His eyes opened to see her tear streaked face inches from his own. "Gah!" he said in surprise.

"Papa!" she cried, flinging her arms around his neck, "You're okay!"

He gave an involuntary grunt as her weight shifted and her knees dug in his chest. At least he knew why his chest felt heavy, the girl was kneeling on him.

"Yeah," he said after he caught his breath. "I'm okay." He shifted her slightly so that she was beside him instead of on top of him. He sat up and scrutinized her, checking for any injuries. Other than red puffy eyes from crying, she looked unhurt. "Are you all right?" he asked. "Do you feel pain anywhere?"

The girl shook her head. Her eyes filled with tears and he pulled her close as she started to sob. He just held her and made soothing noises as she cried. Inwardly he cursed himself. He was lucky. He didn't know what had happened but they were relatively unhurt so far. If he had lost his daughter, he didn't know what he would have done. He could not believe he had grown so complacent. They had been at peace for so many years that he had let his guard down. Well, he wouldn't make that mistake twice. Now he had to find out who or what had attacked them and why.

After a few minutes, Kessa gradually calmed down and her sobs slowed to a few shuddering breathes. Merlin leaned back from her and wiped her tears with his thumb. "Are you sure you're okay?"

She nodded, "yes, Papa."'

"Good." He looked her in the eye. "I know this is really scary and I am not sure what exactly is going on. We need to figure it out but in order to do that, we have to be really brave. Can you do that? Can you be brave for me?"

She sniffed. "Like the knights are brave?" she asked.

Merlin smiled. "Exactly like the knights," he said.

She thought for a minute and then got a determined look on her face. "I'll try," she said.

"Good," Merlin said with a nod.

Kessa's face grew a bit troubled. "But I can't promise I won't be scared." She admitted.

Merlin grinned. "That's okay. I think even the knights get scared sometimes."

Kessa's eyes grew wide. "Really?" she asked in astonishment.

Merlin nodded and then stood up, his aching muscles protesting at the movement. He suppressed a groan. _I'm getting too old for this_ , he thought. _But at least I'm not as old as Arthur._

Once he was on his feet, he glanced around the clearing. The picnic he had set up was gone, as was their horse. Which meant they would have to walk back. Which meant that he would no doubt be carrying Kessa the majority of the way back. He suddenly sympathized with Kilgharrah when the dragon complained about being used as a horse. He pushed that random and unhelpful thought aside as he continued to assess the situation. He frowned. It didn't make sense. Where did the horse and picnic go? The horse could have managed to pull away from where he tied it if the knot was not secure. But picnics did not just run away. Someone could have stolen the horse and the picnic, but then why leave the two of them undisturbed.

"Kessa," Merlin said frowning at his surroundings, "did you see anyone before I woke up?"

"No," she said. "Why?"

"Because our picnic is gone," he replied.

Her eyes widened. "What?" she asked. "But that had my birthday cake!"

Merlin's lips twitched. "I'm sure if we ask nice, the cook will make you a new one."

The girl pouted. This was not turning out to be a very good birthday at all.

Merlin closed his eyes and cast out his magic to get a feel for the spell that had hit him. He gasped as he felt the magic in the air. It was chaotic! Magic was always wild, like nature, but this felt…injured. Out of balance. No wonder he ached, magic itself ached. And he could feel the disharmony of magic impacting the wilderness around him, causing nature to be in pain and unbalanced. There was something very, very wrong. Magic had not been this out of control in many years. The great purge had damaged more than families and lives; it had ripped magic apart and knocked it out of balance. Once Arthur had accepted his destiny, the two of them worked to right the wrongs that had been done to the land and unite Albion and magic once again. Magic had been healed for many years now. So how did it come to this state? He was only unconscious for minutes. It would take years for magic to become so unwound as it felt now.

Well whatever it was, it couldn't be good. And he would have to warn Arthur about both the attack that happened to him and the state of magic. He could not help but feel that things were only going to get worse. There was a bigger plot here that he could not quite see yet. But he had a feeling he was once again going to have to take up the role as magical protector to Camelot and The Once and Future King. He sighed. Well, the peace was nice while it lasted.


	5. Chapter 5: Familiar Faces

Chapter 5: Familiar Faces

Merlin held his daughter's hand as they walked in the direction of Camelot. The young girl was unusually quiet. She could sense her father's tension and it scared her. Merlin murmured reassurances but his thoughts were on trying to figure out what happened. None of it made sense. It didn't help that the churning, restlessness of the surrounding magic was making his head throb. How had he lived like this for the first half of his life?

The sound of a snapping twig jolted him out of his thoughts. He stopped and put his arm around Kessa, pulling her close. She looked up at him curiously. She opened her mouth to ask a question but he shushed her before she could speak. She watched him study their surroundings. She looked around; she didn't see anything. But apparently her Papa did because his hold on her tightened and he seemed to get bigger somehow. She watched in fascination as he was transformed from her Papa to, well, he was still her Papa, but with something else added in. The air around them became charged causing the hair on the back of her neck to stand on end. She felt a thrill of excitement (and perhaps a bit of fear) at the feel of her Papa's magic coming to the surface.

"Whoever you are," he called out in a strong voice, "you would be wise to turn back and leave us in peace."

There was a chuckle from the bushes around them. Ten men stepped out with weapons drawn. Kessa whimpered a little and pressed into her father, but Merlin stood tall and regarded them calmly.

"Oh?" a man in front of them asked with a mocking smirk. "And if we don't?"

"Then I will be forced to remove you myself," Merlin said.

The men laughed. It was a cruel sound that sent shivers down Kessa's spine.

"And how do you plan to do that?" the same man asked with a mocking voice. "Outnumbered as you are with no weapons? I'm quivering in my boots." The other men laughed.

Merlin smirked back at them. "You have no idea who I am, do you?"

The reaction caused the bandits to falter a bit. One middle aged, unarmed man and a young child would usually be cowering in fear. This reaction was unusual and caught them off guard. They glanced at each other and looked uncertainly towards their leader, who narrowed his eyes at the victims before him.

"I don't care who you are," he sneered. "I'm going to kill you. And that pretty little thing by your side is sure to earn me a bit of coin in the slave market."

Merlin's eyes narrowed, the amusement he showed earlier was gone. The temperature around them seemed to drop and the air crackled with power. The bandits shifted nervously, sensing that things were not going their way but not fully recognizing the danger they were in.

"Leave." Merlin commanded. "Now." He stared down the leader of the group. Kessa jumped slightly as his voice filled her head. She looked up at him but his expression had not changed. He was still looking directly at the man before them.

 _'When I say run,'_ he said, ' _you run. As fast as you can. Do not stop until you reach Camelot._ ' He sent her a mental image of how to get through the forest, to the road, and back to the city. The image was burned in her mind and she didn't think she would be able to get lost if she tried. She whimpered again but nodded against him. While Merlin was not looking at her, he could feel her understanding and obedience through their mental connection.

Suddenly, several things happened at once. The bandits jumped towards them with weapons swinging. Merlin flung out his arm and the men before them were tossed to the side. "Run!" he yelled to the girl. She did not need to be told twice. She took off in the direction Merlin had shown her, disappearing into the bushes.

With his daughter safely out of the line of fire, Merlin did not hold back.

Kessa ran as fast as she could through the forest. Branches scraped against her skin as she pushed through the undergrowth, but she did not notice the pain of the scratches. Suddenly, she found herself out of the woods and onto a road. She glanced down the road and saw a group of men on horseback, riding away from her. She could recognize the uniforms of a patrol of Camelot knights. She gave a sob of relief and ran towards them. They could help her and go back to find her father. "Help!" she screamed. "Help!"

The knights looked back and turned their horses around to head back to her. She continued running towards them. As the knights reached her location, one of them jumped off his horse and knelt down before her. The others remained on their horses, weapons drawn and alert for danger.

Kessa flung herself in the knight's arms and sobbed. He looked a bit startled but awkwardly patted her back. "It's okay," he said. "you're safe now."

The girl shook her head and started to explain what had happened. But she was talking very quickly while sobbing and the men had absolutely no idea what she was saying.

"Whoah," the knight kneeling next to her said, "slow down. Everything is okay."

"No!" she shouted startling the knight. "It's not okay! Papa is with those men and they said they'd kill him! You gotta go save him!" She grabbed his hand and started to pull him back down the road in the direction they came from. Before she went more than a few steps, a man burst through the bushes she had been trying to drag the knight toward. The knight drew his sword and pulled the girl behind him. But she slipped through his grasp. "Papa!" she cried, and ran in the direction of the new figure. In a few long strides of his own he met her, fell down to her level and scooped her in his arms tightly.

"You're okay," he murmured kissing her forehead, "you're okay."

The knights stood there a bit awkwardly, not wanted to interrupt the reunion but needing to know what happened and if there was still any danger.

Once the girl had calmed down somewhat, her father started examining her for any signs of serious injury. Satisfied that she was unhurt, he turned to the patrol to thank them and explain all that had happened that day so that they could be on the lookout for potential magical threats. As soon as he looked at them, the words stuck in his throat. His mouth was hanging open in shock. He just gaped at them, unable to form a coherent thought. For he knew these knights very well, and they were not supposed to look this young. "What happened to _you_?" he blurted out before he could stop himself.

A few hours earlier:

Arthur was not having a good day. He had been dealing with bickering nobles all morning who felt slighted regarding their seating assignments at the summer solstice feast. Apparently Lord Elfric had a better seat than Lady Dreda even though the lady had a larger estate. And Sir Eadwig was seated better than his older brother which was apparently entirely unacceptable to the older man. And Lady Hylda was insulted that her son was seated lower than the son of Lady Mildred, despite that fact that her son was closer in line to the throne. Arthur wanted to pull his hair out. They were about 70th in line for the throne. It wasn't like they had any chance of being crowned, anyway. Not to mention the fact that he was still alive and healthy and planned on being king for a very long time. He was slightly insulted and wondered if his father ever had to deal with this nonsense. The next person who complained about their seat placement would find themselves eating in the stables.

It didn't help that Merlin seemed to have vanished today. Usually he was able to help Arthur keep a calm head through this sort of tiresome bickering that the nobles insisted on going through at nearly every important occasion. Even if it was just by allowing Arthur to release some his misplaced aggression on the hapless servant.

"Arthur," a voice said behind him.

"What?" he snapped turning around. He winced as he saw his wife's raised eyebrow. "Sorry," he said with a sigh. "I just," he trailed off.

Gwen smiled and walked up to him. "I know," she said. "Believe me, I've been hearing the complaints as well." The walked together towards their chambers.

"You deal with all of it with amazing grace and patience," Arthur said. "How do you do it?"

"Practice," Gwen replied with a grin. "Remember, I have dealt with nobles' complaints for a very long time."

"Mm." Arthur said. "Well, you're not a servant anymore. You shouldn't have to deal with this. Neither of us should. I'm the king! They should accept my decisions without question. I don't think my father ever dealt with this nonsense."

"That's because people were afraid of your father," Gwen said. "They aren't afraid of you."

Arthur scowled. "So they think I'm weak?"

"No," Gwen said, "never weak. They respect you. That is far better than fear."

"If they respected me so much, then they shouldn't complain," the king grumbled.

"They've always complained. Even when your father was king. They just did it a bit more quietly with him. But don't you think it is better for you to hear their complaints than for them to stew in private." He thought about that for a minute and Gwen continued. "You have their loyalty, Arthur. They complain about little things, but each of them would give their lives for you."

"Yes, well, right now, I'd rather have their silence."

Gwen grinned again. "Maybe you shouldn't have had Merlin decide on the seating arrangements."

Arthur glanced at her. "You know about that?"

"Everyone knows. You always give Merlin the tasks you don't want to do yourself."

"Well, that's the last time I give him this particular task."

Gwen laughed. "That's what you said last time. Don't be so hard on him. He did a good job. While he may not have seated people exactly according to rank, he did that with a reason. He was sure to place feuding individuals far away from each other. Better a few complaints now than a brawl in the middle of the feast."

"Maybe," Arthur said, grimacing at the thought, "but that doesn't mean I won't give him a hard time for it." The thought that he could blame Merlin for the morning's headache cheered him slightly and he chose to conveniently forget about the fact that he had approved Merlin's seating plan.

They arrived at his chambers and he looked around. He felt his temper rising. The room was a mess. It looked like Merlin had not touched a thing. "Where is that idiot, anyway. Why hasn't he done his job this time?"

"You gave him the day off, remember?" Gwen said, calmly starting to pick some clothes up off the floor. Arthur hated watching her clean. She was no longer a servant. But he stopped arguing with her about it several months ago. She was not one to let others do something that she was not capable of doing herself when she had the time. Arthur respected her for that.

"Why would I do that? I don't get days off from being king, he shouldn't get days off either." Gwen just gave him a look from the other side of the room. Arthur sighed. "I need to escape the castle for a bit, clear my head."

"Good idea," Gwen said. She walked over to him and kissed him. "Be careful."

Arthur met Leon, Gwain, Elyan, and Percival as they were preparing for patrol and alerted them that he would be joining them.

"Where's Merlin?" Gwain asked, looking behind king.

"He won't be joining us; he has the day off," Arthur said.

"What?" Gwain asked, "You gave Merlin a day off? Are you feeling well?"

Arthur scowled at the knight and chose not to dignify that with an answer.

Gwain just grinned.

The five of them set off. They were about 45 minutes out of the city when they heard a cry for help from behind them. They turned and saw a young girl running towards them. Her face and arms were covered with scratches. There were a few sticks and leaves caught in her dark hair, and tears were streaming from her hazel eyes. She looked like she had been in some sort of fight. They turned back towards her. Percival got down off his horse. Out of the five of them, he tended to be the best with children so he was usually the one to handle them. The other four remained on guard, prepared for whatever danger may have been following her.

The girl had no sooner got her story out and started dragging Percival back towards the woods when a man burst out of the forest. The knights tensed, gripping their weapons and preparing to defend the girl when she started running towards him. They relaxed slightly when they realized the man was her father.

Arthur and the knights watched the reunion. The man's face was turned down towards his daughter, so none of them got a good look at him, but Arthur couldn't help but think that there was something familiar about the man. He was older than the knights, Arthur would guess late forties or early fifties. His dark hair looked like it was just starting to get a bit of grey. The man wore robes, like a physician. When he looked up and stared at them, Arthur couldn't help but to gape back. Despite the fact that this man was maybe twenty years older, he looked remarkably like a certain manservant who had the day off. Arthur glanced at his knights. Based on their surprised looks, he guessed that he was not the only one who noticed the uncanny similarity.

And then the older man opened his mouth. "What happened to _you_?" he asked in a very familiar voice and a very familiar tone.

"You…what… Who are you" Arthur said, swinging off his horse and striding towards the man, his hand on his sword.

The man calmly stood, pulling his daughter to his side, slightly behind him. He stared at the king with an expression that was both serious and slightly curious, as though he were trying to figure out a perplexing puzzle. Arthur couldn't help but feel a bit uncomfortable under the man's scrutiny. Especially considering that the man practically had Merlin's face but wore an expression that the king had never seen on his manservant. It was disconcerting, to say the least.

Merlin stared at his king. Not only was the other man far too young, but he did not seem to entirely recognize Merlin. He was staring at Merlin with a mixture of suspicion, disbelief, and confusion. A glance towards the knights told Merlin that they were experiencing the same emotions.

Merlin thought through everything that had happened so far. A sudden magical attack, the chaotic state of magic that was as turbulent as it had been since the aftermath of the Purge, bandits too close to Camelot, and now his king and friends looking the way they had in the past. Each factor on its own could have various explanations, but taken together…had he somehow traveled through time?

He didn't think such a thing was possible. Granted, he had slowed down time and stopped time. There was even one occurrence where he was able to save Arthur's life by reversing time by a minute or two. But to actually _travel through_ time by at least 15 or 20 years was unheard of. _On the other hand_ , he thought wryly, _my life is full of unheard of things_. It was the ambient magic that made the decision for him. There was no way for that to have occurred so suddenly, therefore, logically, it hadn't occurred suddenly. Which meant that he was in a time when magic had reached that state of chaos. Looking at Arthur and the knights, it made a strange sort of sense.

"I said," Arthur growled, startling the warlock out of his thoughts "who are you?"

Merlin smirked, "I think you already know the answer to that, sire."

"Do you honestly expect me to believe that you are Merlin?" Arthur asked. The other man shrugged.

"Believe what you want. It won't make it any less true," Merlin said.

"You can't be Merlin, you're too old," Arthur said.

Merlin grinned. It was a grin that Arthur had become very familiar with over the years. It was full of cheek and usually preceded some comment that made the king want to chuck something at the other man's head. "You're older than me," Merlin replied, "so if I'm old, you are positively geriatric."

Arthur heard a snort from behind him. He didn't even have to know that Gwain was probably smirking. Arthur pinched the bridge of his nose. Despite his manservant's sudden and unexplained aging, he had no doubt as to the man's identity. He was far too irritating to not be Merlin.

Apparently the knights had come to the same conclusion because he heard Leon address the man, "Are you really Merlin?" he asked. His tone, while slightly tense and had an undertone of disbelief, was more curious than anything else.

"Yes," Merlin said simply. "I really am."

"How is that possible?" Elyan asked.

Merlin glanced at him and then back at Arthur. "I'm still working on that," he admitted. If he really had been sent back through time somehow, then it was likely that magic was still outlawed. Which would definitely explain his magic induced headache. And he didn't want to give them any reason to suspect that he had magic. They would find out through the natural course of things soon enough and he didn't want it to be revealed prematurely. He supposed that it was possible that his magic had recently been revealed, but he would go back to pretending he had no magic until he could be absolutely sure.

"Who is the girl?" Percival asked.

 _Ah, good question_ , Arthur thought. For he knew that Merlin did not have a daughter, and the child had called him 'Papa.' So perhaps the girl was proof that this man was not Merlin. Arthur glanced at the child who was peeking out curiously from behind her father. Although, as Arthur looked at her, he could not help but to notice a resemblance between her and Merlin. He glanced back at the man who truly did look like an older version of Merlin. Maybe this was Merlin's father? Maybe this was some sort of practical joke and the girl was Merlin's sister. Or maybe something more sinister was going on. But despite the fact that this could be a distinct possibility, he had a gut feeling that this was not the case. And anyway, why on earth would anyone want to pretend to be Merlin, of all people?

"This is my daughter, Kessa" Merlin said, with a proud smile. The girl studied them and then looked up at her father.

"Papa," she said, "Who are they?"

Merlin looked down at her and suddenly realized the very serious and dangerous situation they had landed in. She was very young. There was no way she would understand this situation, Merlin himself barely understood. And to top it off, she had lived her whole life in a world that accepted magic. While there were still people distrustful and prejudiced, she had been sheltered from it. She had never learned to hide magic or fear the consequences of discovery. Merlin felt a shiver of fear for her run through them. If she were to say or do something slightly magical and people took it the wrong way… he couldn't bear thinking about it. He suddenly had a whole new appreciation for what his mother had gone through when he was a child.

Merlin glanced at the knights and then knelt down to her level. He faced her and put his hands on both of her shoulders. "Kessa," he said, "you know these knights."

"No, I don't," she interrupted before he could explain further.

"You do," he said, "but they usually look a bit different." The girls face scrunched up in confusion. "Something happened," Merlin continued. "And we've, well," he trailed off, not sure how to explain it to a girl who was barely six when he was not entirely sure what had happened himself. "I think that we have somehow gone back in time. From when I was younger, before you were born. Early in King Arthurs reign, I think." He continued mentally, hoping that the knights and the king would not find the next moment of silence odd or suspicious, but he needed to get this message to her as quickly as possible before she said something in her ignorance of the situation. ' _Do not mention anything about magic. I will explain when we are alone, but for now you must not speak of it. Do you understand?'_ Her eyes widened slightly and he could feel her fear and confusion but nodded. He nodded back. Good girl, he said. He regretted scaring her but it was better than the alternative. He continued again out loud so the knights could hear. "You know these men, they are our good friends, Sir Leon, Sir Percival, Sir Elyan, Sir Gwain, and King Arthur." He nodded to each man as he said their names.

"Really?" she asked. She frowned at them, staring at each one. The men felt a bit odd under the scrutiny of the child but remained silent. The girl turned her gaze to the king last. "Are you sure that's King Arthur?" she asked.

"Yes. Very sure," Merlin responded.

She narrowed her eyes at the king. "He looks funny," she said.

Merlin grinned. "I always thought so," he said cheerfully.

"Merlin!" Arthur exclaimed.

"Oh," Kessa said. She glanced back and forth between the king and her father. "You're right. He is King Arthur. He's the only person that says your name like that."

At that comment Merlin laughed, the knights grinned at each other, and Arthur frowned slightly, not quite sure how to take that comment.

"He is, isn't he?" Merlin said. He studied his daughter for a moment, she was staring at the king and the knights with curiosity and a confusion on her face. He was slightly concerned how she was taking all of this. She had never encountered anything quite this strange and scary before and he couldn't help but worry about her. She seemed to be accepting that this was the king and the knights for now, but he wasn't sure how long that would last. Not to mention the events that they had already encountered previously that day. He wasn't sure how much more the poor child could take. "Kes," he said quietly. She turned back towards him. "Are you sure you're alright?"

She started to nod, but then her lip started quivering and he saw her eyes start to fill again with tears. "I want to go home," she said.

"I know," he said, pulling her into his arms. But he was at a loss at what to tell here. They were going to have to head back to Camelot in order to figure this all out, but it wasn't really _home_. Not the home that she knew, at any rate. "I know," he repeated, "and we will be going home. But first, we have to go to the past Camelot, what home used to be. And then we will figure out how to get back to our Camelot. I promise."

She sniffed and nodded. "Is it safe?" she asked.

Well that was a loaded question. Merlin hesitated. "I will keep you safe. And so will Arthur and the knights. You know that none of us will let anything happen to you. Right?"

She nodded again, "right," she said.

"Good," Merlin said. He stood up and turned back towards his friends. "I don't suppose you would mind escorting us back to Camelot? We've had quite the day and I'm not sure that Kessa can walk much further. And I don't want to risk running into any more bandits."

"Is that what she had been running from?" Arthur asked, scanning the trees.

"yes," Merlin said, cursing himself silently for letting that slip. It would have been better if he had said nothing and hope that the knights had forgotten how they met his daughter. "But we managed to get away."

"How?" Arthur asked, truly curious. His manservant had always been rubbish with any sort of weapon and despite the fact that this was an older Merlin, he did not appear to be any more experienced with battle than the current Merlin. Not to mention the fact that he carried no weapon.

"I distracted them while Kessa got to safety. And then, well, as soon as I thought that she was safe and far enough away, I ran. I guess we got lucky," he shrugged, doing his best to look calm despite the fact that he felt his heart racing. It had been far too long since he had to lie about what he did and he was sure that his lack of practice would show. Apparently it did not as Arthur nodded, seeming to accept the story.

"In that case, they may still be out there. We should be on guard."

The knights prepared to set back to Camelot. Percival walked his horse over to Merlin and Kessa. "You may take my horse," he said to Merlin.

Merlin looked at him surprised. "What about you?" he asked.

The larger man shrugged. "I can walk. We are not too far out. And you are no doubt tired from everything that has happened to you so far. Not to mention that I am sure that your daughter would be more comfortable riding with you than one of us."

"And you're old," Gwaine added with a grin. "We wouldn't want you to fall and break a hip."

The other knights snickered and Merlin glared at them. "I'm not that old!" he protested.

"Tell that to your grey hairs," Leon added in.

Merlin huffed. "I don't even have that many," he said. "Definitely not as many as you lot. And you all started going grey much earlier than me. At least, those of you who haven't started to go bald. There may be a few strands of grey but at least I still have all of it."

"Some of us go bald?" Gwaine asked aghast. Merlin just crossed his arms and looked smug. "It's not me, is it?" Gwaine asked. "Is it the princess? Please tell me it's the Princess. Merlin?"

Merlin ignored him. He lifted his daughter onto the horse. As she settled she leaned over to him and said in a very loud whisper that Merlin was sure the others could hear, "Papa, none of them are bald."

Merlin grinned and said in an equally loud stage whisper, "Yes, but they don't know that." He then gave her an exaggerated wink which caused her to giggle and cover her mouth with her hands. He grinned back at Gwaine, who was looking an odd combination of relieved, annoyed, and amused.

Merlin turned back to Percival. "Are you sure I can take the horse? I really don't mind walking."

"I'm sure, Merlin," Percival said. Merlin shrugged and decided to stop arguing. Truthfully, he was very tired and sore and would really rather not walk the distance back to Camelot.

The group traveled at a slow pace due to the fact that Percival was walking. He tried to convince them to ride ahead but they would hear none of it. They didn't want to leave anyone alone with bandits potentially nearby, even if Percival was a highly skilled knight. And Merlin did not want to tell them that the bandits were no longer a threat to anyone. He was just glad that Arthur hadn't sent any of the knights to go find them. He didn't know how he would explain the bodies.

They rode in silence for a while, each man lost in thought and sending Merlin and his daughter curious glances. None of them knew quite what to make of this older Merlin. There was no doubt in any of their minds that it truly was their friend. Despite being a bit older, he looked just the same. A few grey hairs and a couple of laugh lines could not hide his distinctive grin and cerulean eyes. His laugh, his voice, and his mannerisms were all familiar. And yet. There was something else, something different. Something more. None of them could quite figure out what it was and they could not stop comparing him to the Merlin they knew in order to try to figure it out.

The most noticeable difference was, of course, his clothing. For one thing, it was very weird seeing him without his characteristic neckerchief. This Merlin's choice of style was more similar to Gaius than to the Merlin they knew. Although he somehow seemed far more impressive in those clothes than Gaius ever was. And maybe that was the strangest difference. This Merlin was impressive. He held himself with a confidence that none of the others ever recalled him exhibiting before. And while he definitely still had his same sense of humor, he had less of the boundless energy that made him resemble something of a puppy. He now seemed to exhume a calming and steady presence. And his eyes, while they still held the same joy and love of life that they had before, there was also something else there, a deeper emotion that they could not quite define.

They watched as Merlin shifted the young girl riding in front of him. She had fallen asleep shortly after they began riding, lulled by the steady rhythm of the horse and exhausted from the day's excitement. They watched as he leaned her against him, trying to situate her in a more comfortable position. He gently brushed a strand of hair that had fallen in her face.

And that was another difference. He was a father, now. And a damn good one, by the looks of it. His love for the young girl was obvious to anyone with eyes.

Merlin glanced up and caught them staring. He grinned. "This must be very strange for you," he said.

"You have no idea," Elyan said.

Merlin chuckled. "I think I do. I'm still trying to wrap my mind around this new situation I've found myself in."

"You know, Merlin," Arthur said, "It is reassuring that some things don't change."

Merlin raised an eyebrow, "What do you mean?"

"Well, it seems as though no matter how old you get, you still manage to find yourself neck deep in trouble and have rely on us to get you out of it."

Both of Merlin's eyebrows shot up. " _You_ get _me_ out of trouble? And just how many times has it been up to me to save your sorry backside."

Arthur frowned. "That is no way to talk to your king, Merlin."

Merlin shrugged. "Maybe not, but it's never stopped me before."

"Just remember that you are not too old for the stocks."

"Whatever you say, sire."

"Just how old are you, anyway?" Arthur asked, curious.

"Fifty this year," Merlin replied.

Arthur looked at him. "Huh," he said, not knowing quite how to respond.

"How old are you?" Merlin asked.

"What? Why?" Arthur asked.

"I would be helpful to know exactly how far back I am. I have a rough estimate but I'd like to be sure."

"Twenty-eight," Arthur said.

Merlin nodded, thoughtfully. "So you and Gwen are married then," he stated. A fact, not a question, but Arthur nodded anyway.

"It is our second summer as husband and wife."

"I see," Merlin said. There was a short pause before he said, "Twenty-five."

"What?" Arthur asked, not sure of the meaning to that number.

"That's how many years back I am, twenty-five. And, coincidentally, the age of the current me. I wonder if that's relevant."

"Why would that be relevant?" Arthur asked.

Merlin shrugged. "I don't know. It's hard to say when magic is involved. There are all sorts of odd rules and strange coincidences. Sometimes they mean something and sometimes they don't."

"And you are an expert on magic now, are you?" Arthur said dryly.

Merlin winced and glanced at the king out of the corner of his eye, silently cursing himself, he was going to have to be more careful. "Maybe not an expert," he said carefully, "but Camelot has dealt with enough magic for us to realize that some knowledge of the arcane arts is vital if we are to defend ourselves against the darker side of magic. I believe Gaius has always acted as a magical advisor for you and your father before you."

"That may be so," Arthur conceded, "but you are not Gauis."

Merlin's lips twitched in a fond smile at the memories of his old mentor, "No," he said, "but he's not around anymore, and I learned a great deal from him."

Arthur looked at him sharply at that last comment. Not around anymore? Well, twenty-five years is a long time and Gaius was already getting on in years. "I'm sorry," Arthur said in sympathy. "I know how close you were." Merlin gave him a small, lopsided smile. "Merlin," Arthur continued cautiously, "Gaius is still around in this time, you know."

Merlin stared at his friend. He hadn't had a chance to think about that. But Arthur was right. Gaius was here and Merlin would have the chance to speak with him again. It would be good to hear his voice and be able to have someone older and wiser give him advice once more. Or slap him on the head and call him an idiot. He would take either one. Merlin felt his eyes start to water, "I hadn't thought of that," he said quietly.

Arthur looked away. "You are very lucky, Merlin, not every man has a second chance to speak with a lost loved one. If I had the chance to go back and speak with my father, even for an instant…" he trailed off.

"I think your father would be proud of the man and king you have become."

"Would he? I'm not sure that my father would agree with all of my decisions."

"Probably not, and when your son is king, you may not agree with all of his decisions. But those will be his choices to make. You are a just, fair, and wise ruler. Your people love you. If that is not something that a father would be proud of, I don't know what is."

Arthur's lips twitched and he looked at the sleeping girl in Merlin's arms. "And I suppose you would know all about what a father would or would not be proud of."

Merlin smiled back, "I have an idea, I think." His smile faded and he looked down at the girl in worry. "We need to figure out how to get back," he said quietly.

"I know," Arthur replied. "We will do everything possible to help you. And in the meantime, we will keep your daughter safe. You have my word."

"Thank you, Arthur. But that is not my only concern. I worry about why this happened. Was there a reason I was sent here? Or was there a reason I was sent away from my Camelot? And what about the younger me? Where is he?"

Arthur faltered. Good question. "You, he, had the day off. I haven't seen him all day. I'm sure he's fine."

Merlin nodded but the empty reassurance did nothing to appease his worry. Merlin remembered quite well the trouble he used to find, and apparently still did find. The sooner this situation was resolved, the better.


	6. Chapter 6: Speculations

**Chapter 6: Speculations**

 _Future Camelot:_

"So who was that woman, anyway?" Merlin asked as he followed Arthur and Gwaine through the corridors towards Arthur's chambers.

"What woman?" Arthur asked.

"The druid woman. Owlen?" He asked, unsure if he remembered her name correctly.

"Olwen," Arthur corrected. "And she is just that: a druid woman."

Merlin sighed in exasperation at the non-answer. "Obviously, but who is she?"

This time it was Arthur who answered in exasperation, "I already told you, what more do you need?"

"Oh, I don't know Arthur, maybe a bit more than just, 'she's a druid.' Where did she come from? Why is she on the council? What are her qualifications?"

Arthur snorted. "Her qualifications? Last I checked, _Mer_ lin, the qualifications of who I decide to appoint to the council are none of your business. I am the king, and I can appoint whomever I want on my council. I don't need approval from you. Especially with you looking like you're twelve." He made a decision to conveniently forget that he did in fact rely on the older Merlin's input on who was appointed to his council. In fact, there was not a single person on the council that Merlin did not thoroughly vet. But this younger version did not need to know that. There was no sense in inflating his sense of self-importance.

Merlin huffed. "Yeah, well, better than the alternative, _sire_. I'm pretty sure that I've seen ancient ruins that looked younger than you."

"Merlin! I am the king. You cannot speak to me that way."

"Really?" Merlin asked. "You must be getting forgetful in your old age, because I always have before."

By this point, Gwaine was not even attempting to conceal his laughter. Arthur glared at both of them. "Merlin. Shut. Up." Arthur said. "And you," he pointed his finger at Gwaine, "stop encouraging him."

"Sorry, Princess," Gwaine said with a grin, not looking the least bit remorseful.

Arthur rolled his eyes heavenward and shook his head. Sometimes he wondered why he put up with these people.

"You never did answer my question, you know," Merlin said after a moment of silence.

Arthur sighed. "Merlin," he explained, "I do not know how much I should tell you. You heard her explain about the potential dangers of revealing too much of the future to you. And if she is right and you really could change the past…" he trailed off, grimacing at the thought. "The risk is too great. Satisfying your curiosity is not enough to take the chance that we would lose everything we have worked to build."

The three were silent for a moment. "Do you really think I would do anything to put you or Camelot in danger?" Merlin asked quietly.

Arthur looked at him. "No," he said. "At least not intentionally. But I am the first to admit that I know very little about how these types of things work. Understanding the ways of magic is far beyond me. That is why I have advisors."

"So she is your magical advisor?" Merlin asked. Arthur sighed and Merlin continued. "Look, Arthur, I already know that she is on the council. You don't have to give me every single detail, but can't you just give a general explanation?"

"I don't see how a few general comments would hurt," Gwaine said. "Like he said, he already knows some things. Like the fact that magic is legal and there's a druid on the council. That's got to be a pretty big shock." Gwaine chuckled, "Can you imagine if it was you in his place? The younger you would have a conniption."

Arthur grimaced at the thought. He was mature enough to admit his past faults, and his lack of patience and tendency to over-react in certain situations were definitely some of them. No, if his younger self had suddenly found himself here, he doubted that he would be handling this very well at all. And he could understand the frustration and confusion that Merlin must be feeling. He nodded.

"Olwen does advise me about magical related issues. However, her primary role is to represent the druids on the council. Her knowledge and wisdom has been invaluable to us."

"Why her?" Merlin asked, truly curious.

Arthur hesitated. "There are several reasons, and I cannot get into all of them. But she is an elder of her people, well respected by druid and non-druid alike, and she has proven herself to be trustworthy."

Merlin nodded. Arthur's trust was not always easy to earn, so if he said that she earned his trust, Merlin thought that she must have done something to do so. Merlin grinned at Arthur. "See?" he said, "now was that so hard?"

Gwaine snorted and Arthur chose to ignore them both as he opened the door to his chambers. Arthur moved some papers that were spread on the table out of the way. "Now, we need to come up with a cover story for you, Merlin. We can't allow people to realize that there are two of you running around."

Gwaine began pouring wine in three goblets. "I think that this conversation will go better with wine," he said.

"You think every conversation goes better with wine," Arthur drawled, but he took the cup that the knight handed him.

"That's because they do, my friend." Gwaine turned to hand Merlin the second cup and frowned as he saw the younger man picking clothes up off the floor. "Merlin, what are you doing?"

Merlin glanced toward Gwaine. "What do you mean?" he asked.

Arthur looked towards Merlin when he heard Gwaine ask that question, and he also frowned. "Why are you picking up my dirty laundry?" he asked.

Merlin frowned back at Arthur. This was the routine that they always had. They would chat as Merlin tidied. Merlin knew that in this case, picking up the mess was his counterpart's responsibility, but he saw no harm in helping his older self out. "Well," Merlin said slowly, as if explaining it to a small child, or perhaps someone with a mental affliction, "it is my job, sire."

"Not anymore," Arthur said, "it hasn't been in a long time."

Merlin stopped what he was doing and looked blankly at the king. "What?" he asked, not understanding. Suddenly a thought hit him. If Arthur knew about his magic, maybe the king didn't want him as a servant anymore. "Did you sack me? Is it because of my magic?"

"What?" Arthur asked in astonishment. "No!" he couldn't believe Merlin would think that.

"Because I have only ever used my magic for you, Arthur. I know I lied to you about it but I didn't have a choice," Merlin had dumped the clothes back on the floor and was now pacing back and forth, looking more and more distraught.

"yes, I know," Arthur started but Merlin was not listening and interrupted.

"I would have been killed by your father if he had found out. And then I was afraid of what your reaction would be. But you have to believe me that I would never hurt you. Or Camelot. Never!"

"Merlin!" Arthur snapped, and Merlin stopped and stared at Arthur, an expression of fear and guilt, on his face. Arthur winced at the expression. It was easy to forget how new all this was to Merlin. The poor boy was still terrified about people knowing about his magic, despite the fact that they already told him they were fine with it. Arthur knew from firsthand experience that years of fear did not dissipate overnight. "I didn't sack you because of your magic," Arthur explained, trying to keep his expression and tone soothing to ease Merlin's discomfort. He felt a bit like he was trying to calm a spooked horse.

"You didn't?" Merlin asked.

"No."

Merlin's expression went from fear to irritated and offended. "Then why did you sack me?" he asked crossing his arms. He gestured at the room. "Because whoever you replaced me with is not doing a very good job."

Gwaine snorted and sipped his wine. "Yeah, Arthur, what were you thinking?"

Arthur shot a glare at the knight before turning back to Merlin. "I didn't sack you at all, you idiot," he said, "I promoted you."

Merlin's eyebrows shot up and he uncrossed his arms. "Promoted me?" Merlin asked in surprise. Arthur was getting a bit dizzy from watching the former manservant's rapid shifts in emotions.

"Yes. Now sit down." Arthur gestured to an empty chair at the table.

Merlin only hesitated a moment before joining the other two men. "Why did you promote me?" he asked as he took the goblet from Gwaine. He glanced at the contents before setting the cup down.

"Temporary insanity," Arthur replied drily. Merlin rolled his eyes. Arthur continued. "It may have come to my attention at some point that you are not as completely useless as I had once thought."

Merlin blinked and then grinned. "Why, Arthur, is that a compliment?"

"Don't let it go to your head," Arthur said.

"Merlin," Gwaine said, "you haven't touched your wine. This is Arthur's private stash. That means it's the good stuff."

Merlin picked up the goblet and sniffed it. It was strange enough sitting at the table with Arthur in his chambers. The only time he ever ate with Arthur and the knights as equals was when they were travelling and trying to avoid attention on the road. Even on hunting trips and longer journeys in the wilderness, Merlin was always serving them and eating on his own later. He never sat at the table for a drink with Arthur in his room. It made Merlin feel a bit awkward and uncomfortable. He glanced uncertainly at the two older men, struck again with how odd this situation was. Just how much had changed if they were expecting him to share a drink with the king in his room as though it was a common occurrence? That must have been some promotion. He took a hesitant sip. It really was quite good. And maybe the alcohol would help ease his discomfort a little. He took a larger gulp before setting the cup back down. "What did you promote me to?" he asked Arthur.

Arthur thought for a moment, thinking through the potential consequences of telling Merlin. However, this was something that Merlin was bound to hear about anyway as he was moving around the castle. Unless they locked him up somewhere. But Arthur had a feeling that if they tried that, it wouldn't last too long. Merlin had a knack for escaping from locked rooms. "At first, you took over Gaius' position as the court physician after he retired." Arthur and Gwaine both grimaced slightly at those memories. It was not that Merlin did not do a good job. He was actually quite good at it. But the circumstances that led to it were… unpleasant, to say the least. There was no need for Merlin to know the details about that.

Merlin frowned curiously at their reactions. Was he really that bad at being a physician?

Gwaine caught his expression and accurately read his reaction. "Don't worry," he said. "You were actually very good at the job. It fit you well. But there were some, let us say, _interesting_ moments."

Merlin winced. "That doesn't sound too good."

Gwaine laughed. "Yeah, well, don't take it too hard, mate. With you involved, there are always interesting moments no matter what you are doing. And we wouldn't have it any other way." The knight grinned at the young warlock. "I'll take interesting over boring any day."

Merlin gave him a dry look. "Happy to be of service," he said. Gwaine grinned back and Merlin tried to look annoyed at him, but couldn't stop his own grin from forming.

Arthur shot a grateful look towards Gwaine from behind Merlin's back. This was not the first time that the king was grateful for the knight's ability to dissipate tense moments and distract from whatever had caused the tension in the first place.

"After a while," Arthur said bringing Merlin's attention back to him, "a new position opened up that fit you even better than being a physician."

"What's that?" Merlin asked.

"Remember how I said that while Olwen did advise in some magical matters, she was primarily ambassador for the druids?" At Merlin's nod, he continued. "While she does know quite a bit about magic, it made more sense for my magical advisor to be the most powerful magic user alive." He gave Merlin a significant look. Merlin's eyes widened. "You are the court sorcerer and magical advisor on the council."

Merlin just stared at him. "Oh." He said, after a moment, unable to articulate anything else. So many thoughts and emotions ran through his head at that, he was unable to form words for any of them.

Gwaine grinned. "Finally found a way to make Merlin speechless," he said.

"Yes," Arthur said, "Now if only we can find the same for you."

"Good luck with that," Gwaine replied, raising his cup slightly in Arthur's direction.

"Merlin?" Arthur asked. "Are you okay?"

Merlin nodded. "Yes, I just," he hesitated. "I never expected you to appoint me to the council."

"Why not?" Arthur asked. "I honestly should have done so many years prior, when I first developed the round table. And I am sorry you did not get the recognition you deserved at that time." Merlin opened his mouth to argue but Arthur held up a hand to quiet him. "It is true. I have relied on your judgement and wisdom for many years in private conversations. It was logical to appoint you to the council."

"But, I'm just a servant."

Arthur stared at him. "No. You are not 'just a servant' and you haven't been since shortly after my father hired you. You are my friend."

Merlin stared at him. He couldn't remember if Arthur had ever admitted that fact before. Merlin had long considered Arthur his friend but he was sometimes unsure if Arthur felt the same way. He swallowed past a lump in his throat and he felt his eyes get a bit red.

"I know it is a lot to take in," Arthur continued. "And while it must seem very sudden to you, none of this happened overnight. You have a long road ahead of you." He met the younger man's eyes and held them. "And I am counting on you to help me through it all, once you get back to your own time. You are incredibly important, to me and to Camelot. Do not forget that."

Merlin just stared at the king for a moment, not sure what to say. Not sure if he could speak, anyway. So he just nodded.

Gwaine watched the encounter with a small smile. He was glad that this younger Merlin was hearing this. He had sometimes wondered about Merlin's sense of self-worth and he hoped that this helped him through some of the more difficult times ahead. But there was now an awkward silence and Gwaine did not do awkward silences. "So should I leave you two girls in private for a minute?" He gestured towards the door, "because I can leave."

Arthur glared at the knight who grinned back. Both older men pretended that they did not notice Merlin quickly swipe at his face with his sleeve.

"I think that's enough questions for now," Arthur said. "We are here to try to figure out a believable story for you."

"If everyone knows I have magic, why not just stick with the truth?"

Arthur and Gwaine glanced at each other, thinking about the warnings that Olwen had given earlier.

"Well," Gwaine started, "people know you have magic, but not everybody is happy about it. There are a lot of people that do not appreciate that change that Camelot has gone through over the past twenty years. There are still those who feel that magic is evil and they blame you for the 'corruption of the kingdom,'" he said, scoffing as he quoted what some dissenters had said. "And on the opposite end of the spectrum," he continued, "there are magic users who feel that you have not done enough. These people think that you've betrayed them by allowing a Pendragon to remain on the throne."

"The truth is, there has been more than one attempt on your life over the years. If word were to get out that you are here from the past, younger, less experienced, and less powerful, I fear that it may be a tempting opportunity for certain individuals to not only get you out of the way, but potentially mold Camelot into the kingdom they think it should be," Arthur said.

"There are several groups that hold you responsible for whatever bad situation that they feel they can blame on you. You are apparently a very convenient scapegoat, my friend," Gwaine said.

"Oh," Merlin made a face. "Great. And here I was worried the future would be boring."

Arthur grinned at his expression. "Don't worry, most of the would be assassins are incompetent and have failed quite spectacularly."

Gwaine grinned at a few odd memories, "We've even started taking bets on the next outlandish attempt on your life."

"Thanks," Merlin said, "I'm touched by the concern. Really."

Gwaine laughed. "You started it. And you've become quite capable of thwarting assassination attempts."

"Well, I should hope so," Merlin said, "I've had plenty of practice from protecting Arthur's royal backside all these years. But if any attempts have been that useless, then why worry about it?"

Arthur sighed, "Because, they are useless against an older you who has had many years of dedicated study. Not a you who has gotten by through sheer dumb luck and spur of the moment decisions. At this point in your life, I think you still study magic as the need arises in reaction to whatever crisis has found you. You have not had the time to devote yourself to consistent study as you will in the future. And that makes you vulnerable to people who are used to dealing with a much more powerful version of yourself. And while I am sure that you would be able to defend yourself adequately enough, it would be best not to put the temptation out there for anyone who may want to do you harm. I think you have enough to worry about."

Merlin nodded. "Yeah, probably. That makes sense. So do you think that one of those groups is responsible for my situation? Could it have been that some sort of attempt to get rid of me backfired?"

Both Arthur and Gwaine thought about that for a moment. "Didn't Olwen say something about that tree protecting you?" Arthur asked. "That makes me think that the attack came from your end."

"Unless someone actually decided that it would be easier to get rid of a younger Merlin. What if the attack came from someone from this time, trying to go back to kill him?" Gwaine said.

"But then why not attack him as a child when he would have been even more vulnerable? For that matter, why not go after his mother and prevent Merlin from even being born? That would have been far easier," Arthur replied.

"You're assuming that traveling through time is easy," Merlin said. "I don't know how it happened to me, but if it really was an easy task to accomplish, then wouldn't people be doing it all the time?"

"Olwen did mention that the art had been lost ages ago," Gwain added. "From what she was saying earlier, it sounds like the only person alive capable of such a feat is Merlin." Both men looked at the warlock.

"Just because it may not be possible does not mean that some fool did not try," Arthur said with a sigh.

"Arthur," Merlin said, "if the attack did originate on my end, then it was no doubt a ploy to get me out of the way so that whoever it is would have an easier time reaching you. If that is the case, I need to get back as soon as possible to make sure they don't succeed."

Gwaine looked solemnly at Arthur, "Your early death would be just as devastating as Merlin's."

Arthur nodded. The truth was, with Merlin here instead of in his own time, they were all in danger. "In any case, our best option is to get Merlin back where he belongs. How or why he got here is less important. And until we can find the actual culprit, these are all just speculations anyway." There was a pause as they all fell into their own thoughts. After a moment Arthur cleared his throat, "In the meantime, we need keep Merlin safe while he is here."

"So," Gwaine said, leaning back in his chair and grinning at Merlin, "Any ideas for the story you want? After all, you're the expert at coming up with spur of the moment excuses to cover up what you've been doing and where you've been. I seem to remember quite a few creative ones."

Arthur snorted in derision. "Creative indeed. Merlin's excuses may be creative but hardly believable."

"I don't know about that, Arthur. I seem to remember that you fell for them every time, even some of the more, shall I say, colorful tales. In fact, Merlin once told me how he convinced you that he was checking for woodworm. You do realize that there is no such thing."

Merlin snickered and Arthur shot glares at both of them. "I was half asleep at the time! It doesn't count. I thought that he was just being his normal, idiotic self. How was I supposed to know that his idiocy was in actuality a quite convincing cover?"

"Whatever you have to tell yourself, Princess."

Arthur glared. "Stop calling me that. I thought you had given up that horrendous nickname years ago."

"What can I say," Gwaine said with a shrug, "seeing Merlin like this has made me nostalgic."

Arthur sighed. "Can we please focus. I would like to get this settled sometime today."

"What about that old man disguise you've used in the past. It has been years since you've aged yourself. I doubt anyone who didn't already know would recognize you," Gwaine suggested.

Arthur perked up, "And then we could make jokes about you being old instead of the other way around."

Merlin shook his head. "Sorry, as fun as that sounds, it won't work. I can't maintain that spell for longer than a few hours without completely exhausting myself. Not to mention the fact that I don't fancy wandering around for days on end being achy all the time and unable to move properly."

Arthur nodded, "And if there is a chance that someone with ill intentions discovers your identity, you will need to be alert and capable of fighting back and escaping. And I suppose any long term spells to alter your appearance will similarly tax you over time?" Merlin nodded. "Alright, other suggestions?" Arthur asked.

"What if we had our Merlin cast a disguise spell on you, once the other knights bring him back?" Gwaine asked. "I know that complete alterations are difficult but maybe just a few minor changes such as hair and eye color. Then we explain the remainder of the resemblance by saying you are family. Perhaps Merlin's nephew or something."

Merlin frowned. "I don't have any siblings," he said.

"But most people would not know that," Arthur said. "Many people know that your mother raised you on her own, and your father's identity is only known to a handful of individuals."

"My father?" Merlin interrupted raising his eyebrows. "Who knows about my father?"

"Just myself, Gwen, and the original Round Table. You shared that knowledge with those closest to you. But it has remained a secret otherwise."

"I told you about my father?" Merlin asked.

"Yes," Arthur said, "and I'm sorry. I'm sorry that you never had the chance to truly get to know him or even mourn him properly."

Merlin just nodded, he picked up a fork that was lying on the table and absently started to play with it. "What else have I told you?" he asked, keeping his gaze on the fork but watching Arthur out of the corner of his eye.

"Everything," Arthur said.

Merlin winced. "Everything?"

"Yes."

Merlin bit his lip. "And, ah, how did you take it?"

Arthur sighed and leaned back. "Not well," he admitted.

Gwaine snorted, "understatement of the century."

"We all made mistakes. We all did things and said things we regret. And I was angry. But I did not stay angry forever. It did take a while to calm down, but I did eventually and I was able to listen to your explanation, and everything was forgiven and healed in time."

"How much time?" Merlin asked, looking up at the king.

Arthur shrugged and gave him a small smile, "I think that is one of those things you're just going to have to find out on your own."

Merlin wrinkled his nose at that response but knew better than to argue.

"So Merlin," Gwaine said, changing the subject back to its original topic, "how would you like to be your own nephew?"

"I don't know," Merlin said, "I'm not sure I like the idea of telling people that my father was unfaithful to my mother. I know he wasn't there growing up, but he would have been if it were possible. And I know he loved my mother more than anything."

"Maybe so," Gwaine said, "but he was still a man. And men sometimes make mistakes and do things that they swore they would never do. Especially if they have a bit of mead in them."

"Great. Now we'll say my father was a drunk, too."

"Merlin," Arthur started.

"No," Merlin sighed, "you're right. It's a good plan. It's just…" he trailed off.

"I understand," Arthur said, "and we will be sure that your father's name and reputation is not sullied in this. If we gloss over how you are related, he may not even come up."

At that moment, the door opened and Gwen came inside.

"Ah, Gwen," Arthur said with a smile. He stood as she came over and kissed her cheek. "Were you able to send off the knights to find our Merlin without any trouble?"

She smiled. "Yes, they are on their way to where Merlin told me he would be. And I thought that there was another who deserved to know what has happened here." She turned to Merlin and gave him a smile. "I alerted your mother that you are here."

"My mother?" Merlin asked, straightening in his chair. His mother was still alive? He did a quick mental calculation. She would be around 67. While that was getting a bit old for a peasant woman, especially one who lived alone, it was not unheard of. He felt a rush of relief that she was still here in the future. Even though he had not seen her very much the past several years, she was his constant, a rock that he had always clung to when things got difficult. He suddenly wanted nothing more than to see her. But she was all the way in Ealdor. "You sent her a letter?" he asked.

"No," Gwen said, she smiled and her eyes got a slight mischievous twinkle. "I walked down the hall and told her in person."

"She's here? In Camelot?" He found himself on his feet before he really realized what had happened. "Why? Did something happen to Ealdor? Is she just visiting? Or,"

Gwen laughed and held up a hand. "No, Merlin," she said. "she was getting too old to farm on her own and you managed to convince her to move here. And she was more than happy to, especially considering we appointed her honorary Grandmother to our children."

"She… your… what?" Merlin asked, at a loss for words. He turned to Arthur, "You reproduced?"

Arthur gave him a dirty look and tried to resist throwing something at the other man. It helped that there were no pillows within reachable distance. "Yes, _Mer_ lin," he said. "One of the duties of a king is to ensure that there are heirs."

"And of course," Gwen said, with a significant look towards her husband, "the children are a joy, and we would have had them even without the need to produce an heir."

Arthur winced at Gwen's tone and smiled apologetically at Gwen, "Well, yes, obviously."

Gwen smiled triumphantly and then returned her focus towards Merlin. "Both of our parents have passed years ago. And I didn't want my children to experience life without some sort of grandparent. I have considered you like another brother for many years, so by extension, your mother is also family."

"Oh," Merlin said. He thought about that for a moment and then nodded. "Can I see her?"

"Of course," Gwen said. "I asked her to wait outside while I told her you were here. You have had plenty of shocks already today, we thought it best that you were given a bit of a warning before you saw her." Merlin nodded and Gwen walked back towards the door. She opened it and spoke quietly. Merlin could not her what she said, nor could he see past her. He took a step towards the door when it opened a bit further. Gwen stepped aside and Hunith walked in.

Merlin studied her, at first glance he nearly did not recognize her. He probably would not have if he had merely encountered her in the halls. Her hair was entirely silver and her face lined with age. She wore a deep blue gown that was simple in design but the fabric looked expensive. She wore it with confidence, and had he not known better, he would have expected her to be a noble woman. Nothing in her looks or posture betrayed her humble origins. Merlin suddenly felt a bit shy and uncertain. Here he was, in rough clothing stained with mud and grass, with dirt under his fingernails from pulling at herbs all day. And everyone around him was dressed in the fine clothes of nobles; even his own mother. He did not belong here.

Hunith watched her son study her. She saw his expression go from surprise, to discomfort. She saw the insecurities that he always thought he hid so well, (and perhaps he did with the others, but Hunith had always been able to see right through him). Hunith quirked a small smile. "Oh, Merlin," she said, holding out a hand to him.

Hunith's voice shook Merlin out of his thoughts. Her voice was the same. It held the same love and understanding he always heard in her voice. "Mother," he said, going to her. She pulled him into an embrace which he returned before pulling away. "I've spent the day in the woods," he explained, "I don't want to mess up your dress."

"Nonsense," she said. "When have you ever known me to shy away from a bit of dirt?"

"Never," he admitted, "but you never used to wear anything quite so fine, either."

"Yes," she said, smoothing the fabric of the skirt. She grinned at him. "It did take a bit of getting used to. And I managed to get more than one dress covered in dirt. But do you know what I've learned since moving here?" she asked, her eyes sparkled with amusement.

"What's that?" he asked.

"Camelot has a much better laundry facility here than back in Ealdor. In fact, if I leave any soiled garment hanging near the door, it disappears and then reappears completely clean the next day, as if by magic."

Merlin grinned. "That's not magic, Mother. That's the maid service"

"Well," Hunith said grinning back, "I quite like not having to wash my own clothes. I've grown rather spoiled living here."

"Good," Merlin said earnestly, "you deserve to be spoiled."

"Don't let her fool you, Merlin," Gwen said, "I've caught her more than once sneaking down to try to do her own laundry. In fact, she insisted on doing most everything on her own, she nearly put her poor maid right out of a job."

Merlin raised an eyebrow, "and that is different from what you do, how?"

Gwen laughed and didn't answer.

Hunith's grin softened as she looked at her boy. He looked so young. Still so carefree and innocent. Although she knew that even at the age he was now, he had suffered and made difficult decisions that was transforming the naïve and optimistic boy into the self-assured and wise man he would be. While he still had a cheerful personality, it had been tempered somewhat through experience. This was certainly not a bad thing, but like all parents, she sometimes missed the child that he was, even as she was bursting with pride at the man he had become. She smiled at him and laid her hand on his cheek. "You are a good boy, Merlin. A good man. And the best son a mother could hope for." He covered her hand with his own.

"I'm glad you're here," he told her.

She smiled again, squeezed hand and then turned to greet the two men, still sitting at the table. "Sire," she said with a respectful nod. He nodded back. "Sir Gwaine."

Gwaine, stood. "Ah, my dear Lady Hunith," he said. "You look ravishing this evening. Your beauty grows with each passing day." Arthur rolled his eyes, Gwen giggled, Merlin gaped at him.

"Gwaine!" he exclaimed. "That's my mother!"

"And an elegant flower she is, too," he said with a grin.

"Ah, sir knight," Hunith said with a laugh, "you do know how to make an old woman feel good about herself."

"Never old, dear Hunith," he said, "Refined. Like a fine wine, age has increased your value."

"Gwaine!" Merlin said again, a bit appalled. He wasn't quite sure which was worse, Gwaine's attempt at flirting with his aged mother, or his attempt at being poetic. How much wine had the knight been drinking while they were sitting here?

Hunith merely laughed. "Peace, Merlin. It's all in good fun." she said. "And I quite enjoy a bit of harmless flirting."

"Mother!" Merlin said, aghast.

"I could not have said it better myself," Gwaine said. He pulled a chair back from the table and gave an exaggerated bow towards Hunith, "Will you do me the honor of sitting beside me at this fine table?"

"You are too kind," she said, taking the seat.

Merlin scowled and made his way to his own seat. He sat heavily and glared at the knight. "At least I can be confident in the fact that the future won't be boring, what with having to protect my mother's virtue from Gwaine all the time." Laughter greeted that comment, and, after a moment, Merlin joined in. He could not be truly upset. While growing up, he had been witness to his mother finding very creative ways to dissuade the occasional unwanted suitor. He knew that she could take care of herself. And he also had a feeling that the over the top flirting was partly for his benefit, to rile him up.

"Have you dined yet, Hunith?" Arthur asked, "I was thinking of sending down someone to fetch dinner."

Merlin stood and took a step towards the door.

"Where are you going, Merlin?" Arthur's exasperated voice stopped him before he could get more than a step away.

"You said that you were going to send someone to get dinner. I thought, usually that someone is me."

"Not right now, it isn't. We haven't disguised you, yet. Or did you forget already."

"Oh," Merlin sunk back into his chair. "Right. Habit, I guess." Hunith and Gwen both gave him understanding smiles. They both knew from experience how hard certain habits were to break.

"As I said, it does take some getting used to," Hunith told her son.

"I'll go send for something to be brought up," Gwaine said. He left the room, made the dinner request to a passing servant, and then rejoined them.

The five of them reminisced for a while. Hunith shared some stories from Merlin's childhood, much to his chagrin but to the enjoyment of everyone else. Despite hearing it hundreds of times, Gwaine requested hearing from Merlin exactly how he had met Arthur. He laughed heartily at picturing Merlin calling the arrogant young prince an ass. This lead to them swapping stories about how they had all met each other and some of their other early adventures. They were only interrupted once by a couple of servants knocking at the door with the dinner. Despite his many protests, Arthur made Merlin hide in the wardrobe while the servants set the food at the table. He did not allow Merlin to come back out until the servants had gone and the door was firmly closed behind them. And then he waited another extra couple of minutes because he knew that it would irritate his former servant before calling him back out.

They continued swapping stories even after they had finished dining and would not doubt have been content doing so the entire evening had Sir Leon not knocked before opening the door and stepping inside, followed by Sir Galahad. "Sire," he said, his tone was calm and even, but all of them recognized it as the tone he got when he was worried but didn't want anyone to realize it.

Arthur frowned and got up. He made his way over to the door as the other four watched in worry. Arthur and the two newcomers stepped just outside the door. The four at the table could see Arthur and the two knights speaking in hushed tones but could not hear what was said. As Galahad spoke, Arthur closed his eyes and scrubbed at his face with his palm. He sighed, then straightened and spoke a few words back to them. They nodded and bowed, then left to do whatever it was the king had commanded of them.

"What happened?" Hunith whispered, as Arthur came back in the room. She knew that the knights were looked for her son and granddaughter. She could not bear the thought of something happening to either of them. Not to mention how this version of her son would handle it. Her eyes shot to the young Merlin and then back to the king.

Arthur sighed. "The knights I send out to look for Merlin found his horse, and the picnic that he had taken with him. Apparently it was laid out as though they were about to eat. But there was no sign of either one of them."

Gwen reached over and grabbed Hunith's hand at the news. Arthur continued, "There was no sign of a stuggle and no tracks leading away from the area to suggest they had gone anywhere. According to Sir Galahad, it was as if they had just disappeared." At this, they all turned to Merlin who cringed slightly at the attention, as though expecting to be blamed.

"Do you think they somehow…switched places?" Gwen asked. "Is that possible?"

At the question, all of them looked towards Merlin as though expecting him to answer. He just blinked at them. "How should I know?" he finally asked. "I don't even know how I got here!"

Arthur slumped slightly at the outburst. They had automatically turned to Merlin for an answer of anything magic related. But this Merlin was not used to that and did not have the experience. Arthur had to remind himself that it was not fair for him to expect this Merlin to have the same level of knowledge that he would in the future.

"Perhaps," Arthur said, "the knights will continue to search the surrounding area just in case." Arthur put a hand on Hunith's shoulder. "Merlin will be fine. You know he is more than capable of taking care of them both."

Hunith nodded and then shot Arthur a tight smile. "Yes," she said, "There is no one more capable. But that does not stop me from worrying."

"I know, but there is little we can do at the moment. When we are done here, we can go speak with Olwen and see what she thinks. In the meantime," before he could finish there was a knock at the door and a servant poked his head in. He looked to be in his late teens. He had brown eyes, light brown hair, and a dusting of freckles across his nose and cheeks, which were a bit difficult to see under the smudges of dirt.

"Sire," the servant said, "Are you finished with your dishes?" The servant looked toward the table to evaluate the dish situation himself when he caught sight of Merlin. The servant blinked and then recognition hit him and his eyebrows shot up in surprise. "I'll uh, I'll come back later," he said backing up. He seemed almost eager to leave and no doubt start spreading rumors about the court sorcerer's current condition.

Arthur rubbed at the headache that was returning. "Wait," he told the servant. "May as well take the dishes with you."

The servant nodded and headed back into the room. Grabbing the plates and openly staring at Merlin, which was beginning to irritate the warlock.

"Something the matter?" Merlin asked.

The servant jumped. "Uh, n-no. Not at all milord. It's just, I mean, that is to say, well, I've never seen you use your magic in this manner before. It's, uh, an interesting change."

Merlin blinked at the younger boy before deciding to just play along. "Well," he said cheerfully, "I thought I'd try something new. Do you like it?" He spread out his arms.

The servant nearly dropped the plate at the direct question, he stammered something unintelligible, and then fled the room, leaving a trail of cutlery behind him.

"Merlin!" Arthur exclaimed. "What were you thinking?"

"It was your idea, sire," Merlin said with a shrug and a smug grin.

"My idea! How was it my idea to let the whole castle know what is going on? You were supposed to be keeping a low profile! By tomorrow, the whole kingdom will know that you're here."

"No. By tomorrow the whole kingdom will know that I created some sort of youth spell on myself. When you first saw me, that's what you thought. And I'm pretty sure that is what that servant thought, too."

Arthur opened his mouth to argue, and then shut it again, thinking.

"That's actually a pretty good plan," Gwaine said.

"I do have some practice with these things," Merlin said.

"And what do we tell everyone when the other Merlin comes back?" Arthur demanded.

Merlin shrugged. "Hopefully I'll be gone by then. And if not, well, I'll think of something. I always do. And with two of me, it should be that much easier."

Arthur groaned. He didn't like it but there was no helping it now. And he did grudgingly admit that it was a believable story. After all, as Merlin had said, it had been the first conclusion that he had jumped to. If that was what people expected anyway, then they would believe it with ease. However, there was one small problem. Merlin was lacking 25 years of memories. Arthur could admit that Merlin was good at thinking on his feet and coming up with lies on the fly. But there were some things that were sure to throw him. Such as the fact that he had a daughter. He thought again about forcing Merlin to stay in his chambers unless he was with one of them, but he knew his friend too well. There was absolutely no way that Merlin would actually stay there, even if he did intend to. Something would cause him to leave on his own eventually. They were going to have to give him at least a bit of information to prepare him.

Arthur gave a resigned sigh and looked at Merlin. "We have a lot to talk about," he said.


	7. Chapter 7: Blast in the Past

Chapter 7: Blast in the Past

The past:

As the group rode through the town on the way up to the citadel, the people on the street would hurry out of the way of the passing horses and bow to the king. Merlin got a more than a few curious glances and several double takes from the townspeople as he was not exactly the person they were used to seeing riding at the king's side. The knights shifted a bit uneasily at the glances and whispers of the people, but if Merlin noticed, he did not show it. He was busy looking around the town with mild interest. Occasionally, the knights would notice that he would see something that would increase his interest and he would stare at something or another with a bit more intensity. In these cases, the knights would try to figure out what caught his attention but everything looked completely normal to them.

Finally, Arthur couldn't take it anymore, "What are you doing?" he asked after Merlin spent a bit more time than usual studying a particular storefront.

Merlin turned his attention back to the king and away from the little shop. "Nothing," he said, "sorry. It's just a bit odd. So much is different and yet the same. There are a lot of fond memories." As soon as he said that they passed the stocks. He glanced at it and he gave a wry grin. "And some not so fond."

Arthur caught the direction of his gaze and smirked. "Well, if you're feeling a bit nostalgic, I'm sure I can arrange a visit," he said, nodding in the direction of the currently empty stocks.

Merlin grinned. "Tempting," he said, "but I'll have to pass for now."

"If you change your mind…"

"You will be the first to know," Merlin said with a laugh.

When they reached the courtyard, two grooms and a stable boy scurried over to take the reins of the horses as the knights dismounted. Merlin gently shook Kessa to wake her up. She blinked and rubbed her eyes. As she took a moment fully wake up, Merlin extracted himself from her and swung off the horse. He then reached up and set her on the ground. Once he was sure she was steady on her feet, he turned around and found himself face to face with one of the grooms.

The groom took a startled step back as he realized just how close he was standing. "My apologies," he said, "I was just going to ask if…" the man trailed off as he got a good look Merlin's face. The groom blinked. Then he looked at the little girl, the knights, the king, and then back to Merlin. "Uh," he said.

Merlin closed his eyes, resigning himself to be stared at for the next day or so (or however long it took to get back to his own time. He could only hope it wouldn't be more than a couple of days). He opened his eyes and smiled at the groom. "What were you going to ask?" he said.

This seemed to shake the groom out of his stupor somewhat. "Oh. Yes. Uh, the horse. I, uh, I can take her. If you want."

Merlin nodded and handed the other man the reins. "That would be great. Thanks." He turned back towards Arthur and the knights. Arthur was scowling slightly as he looked around the courtyard at all the people who had suddenly popped out of nowhere to point and whisper. He groaned. His ride on the patrol was supposed to help him to escape from his problems for a while, not create new ones. And speaking of the patrol, they certainly did not get very far. He was going to have to send some knights out again to finish the route. He beckoned Merlin and the knights off to the side where there were slightly less people and less chance of being overheard.

"Elyan," Arthur said, "please find Gwen and have her meet us in Gaius' chambers. Leon, we should have someone finish the patrol. See to it that it gets done. Percival, see if you can't track down Merlin," he hesitated, "the other Merlin. Gwaine," he paused and looked at the last knight. He had suddenly run out of tasks. "Just, find something useful to do."

Gwaine laughed and the other knights grinned before bowing to the king and moving off to their various errands. "I think I'll stick with you two, for now. Could be entertaining."

"Actually," Merlin said, suddenly thinking of something. "You should go down to the tavern."

The knight and the king both turned to stare at him. "I thought I said something useful," Arthur said. "How is the tavern at all useful? And what is it with you and taverns anyway?

"Not that I'm opposed to a trip to the tavern, but is there any particular reason you're sending me there? Usually you're the one sent to drag me out."

Merlin laughed. "True. But did you see some of the stares that we were getting as we rode into town? Not to mention everyone that showed up to gawk in the courtyard. It may be useful to know what rumors are floating around town regarding our current situation."

"Your current situation, you mean, but I see your point," Gwaine said with an approving nod. "Well if it's a tavern spy you want, you came to the right man."

Arthur nodded. "That is actually a good idea," he said.

"You don't have to sound so surprised about it," Merlin said.

Arthur ignored him. "Just be sure you are collecting rumors, not adding to them," Arthur instructed. "Not yet anyway."

"Unless they're really good," Merlin said.

Gwaine winked at Merlin and sauntered off, whistling.

"Papa," Kessa said suddenly, pointing off to the side in an accusing manner. "Where are the butterflies?" Merlin and Arthur both looked in the direction she was pointing. It was an open, grassy area to the side of the courtyard that was very rarely used for anything. It was so out of the way that people generally didn't even walk over there.

"Butterflies?" Arthur asked.

"They're supposed to be there," she looked up to glare at Arthur, as if he was personally responsible for their absence.

"Not yet, Kes," Merlin said. "They haven't come yet. We're in the past, remember. The flowers haven't been planted yet."

Kessa frowned. "When are you going to plant them?" she asked.

"It will be a while. But once we get back home, they will be there. I promise. Now come on, let's go see what other changes we can find."

"What butterflies?" Arthur asked Merlin as they headed towards the physician quarters.

Merlin shrugged, "That section of the courtyard is never used so it was decided to plant a flower garden. It was small at first but grew bigger over the years. All the flowers have attracted a lot of butterflies. Kessa like them."

They arrived at the physician's rooms and Merlin froze outside the door, staring at it but making no move to enter. Arthur looked at him. "Merlin?" he asked.

Merlin dragged his eyes from the door and locked onto Arthurs face. "I'm not sure I can do this," he said softly. "I have often wished I could speak to him one more time. Get his advice on a situation or even just sit and chat. I would think of all things I would say. But now… now he's here, just on the other side of that door. And I don't know what to say," he closed his eyes and heaved a sigh. "If I speak to him now, when I leave, it will be like losing him all over again. And I'm not sure that I can handle that."

Arthur was silent a moment, not entirely sure what to say. It was usually Merlin's job to be reassuring and comforting, not the other way around. Arthur was the first to admit that he wasn't really good with the whole 'feelings' thing. "I think," he said slowly, "that you would regret it for the rest of your life if you let this opportunity pass. I think Gaius will be pleased to see you and won't really care what you say."

Merlin laughed. "I think Gaius will call me an idiot for getting into this mess in the first place," he said. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "You're right, though. I would regret it if I went back without seeing him." He glanced down at his daughter. "Well, Kessa, are you ready to meet your honorary grandfather?" She nodded eagerly. Merlin turned to a slight frown. "He is a physician, remember. Just like back home, we don't touch anything without permission first. Especially if we don't know what something is. Right?"

"Right," Kessa responded.

Merlin smiled. "Good girl," he said, "let's go inside."

When Merlin stepped in the room, he was nearly overwhelmed by the wave of memories that crashed into him. The first thing he noticed was the scent of the room. A mingling of fragrant spices with an undercurrent of a few more pungent herbs. All of that mixed with the slightly musty smell of old books and scrolls and a very slight hint of algae from the leech tank that went a few days too long without being cleaned. The table was cluttered with a few empty jars scattered haphazardly among other bottles that were half full of various herbs and other ingredients. A few papers and opened books were strewn amongst the jars on one end of the table. A working space had been cleared on the other end of the table where a small collection of vials filled with an amber colored liquid were corked and stood in a meticulous, straight line adding a bit of order that seemed out of place on the otherwise chaotic table. Gaius stood with his back towards the door, filling another vial from a medium sized cauldron.

Merlin stood, staring at his former mentor for what seemed like a lifetime, though in reality was probably only a few seconds. Arthur shifted beside him, feeling a bit uncomfortable to be a witness to this reunion but willing to let Merlin take the lead. He absently wondered if he ought to leave the room and allow Merlin's reunion with the old physician to be a private one. Before he could make a decision, Merlin spoke, "Gaius," he said softly.

"Ah, you're back," Gaius said, not looking up from where he was carefully adding a measure of fluid into a vial. "I was wondering how late you would stay out." He corked the vial, placed it in line next to the others, and looked up. He blinked. He stared at Merlin, to the young girl clutching his hand, to the king standing beside him, and then back to Merlin. "What…" he trailed off, glanced towards the king. Gaius did not know what to think. Had Merlin tried to cast an aging spell again without getting old enough? And despite looking older, the man was obviously Merlin, but the king was standing there looking slightly uneasy, but not angry or homicidal, so Gaius guessed that Merlin had not done magic in front of him. And where did the girl come from? Gaius sighed. When was the idiot boy ever going to learn how to stay out of trouble? He raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms staring at the three young people before him. "What happened?" he demanded.

Merlin blinked and had to fight an automatic impulse to deny the blame. He suddenly felt like a boy about to be scolded for doing something foolish. And who was he kidding? As soon as he explained to Gaius what had happened, he probably would still be scolded for doing something foolish. He felt his lips twitch in amusement at the thought. It had been a very long time since anyone had dared to scold him. Arthur sometimes yelled and occasionally threw things at him while Gwen, Olwen, and his mother would make gentle suggestions that he knew were not really suggestions at all. Everyone else was either too star stuck by him, too fearful of him, or like the knights, figured it wasn't their place or really didn't care what he did anyway. It had been a very long time since he had a good tongue-lashing complemented by disapproving glares. He was probably overdue.

"Merlin," Gaius said, reminding the warlock that he was waiting for an explanation. Was is just Merlin, or did both Kessa and Arthur take a small step away from the object of Gaius' disapproval.

Merlin mentally shook himself back into focus and stared at his old mentor, suddenly he felt his eyes start to water and before he knew what he was doing, he was across the room and had the startled older man in a firm embrace.

Gaius, was too startled to react at first but after a second he returned the hug, giving the king a questioning look over Merlin's shoulder. Arthur caught Gaius eye and sighed, running his fingers through his hair. He then shook his head and nodded towards Merlin. Realizing he was not going to get an answer from the king, Gaius tuned his attention back to the young man in his arms. He gave Merlin a gentle squeeze and then pulled back, keeping his hands on Merlin's shoulders. He searched his wards eyes, "what happened?" he asked again, more gently than the first time.

"Sorry, sorry," Merlin said, quickly wiping the water that was threatening to leak from his eyes. And here he thought he had gotten better at controlling his emotions over the years.

"Are you hurt?" Gaius asked, performing a quick visual examination.

"No," Merlin said, "nothing like that. I'm fine. Really. It has just been so long. I was overcome for a moment. I'm fine."

"'so long'?" Gaius echoed. "since what?"

"Since I've seen you. It's been years."

"Merlin, you're not making any sense."

"No, you're right. Just," Merlin closed his eyes and took a deep breath to calm himself and settle the emotions swirling in him. It didn't help that he was still slightly unsettled by the churning of the ambient magic. Although he was adjusting to it. "I'm sorry. It's been a bit of a rough day," he told his former mentor.

"You don't say," Gaius replied.

Merlin smiled at Gaius' tone. "Perhaps we should sit," he said, gesturing towards the benches, "it's a bit of a long story."

Gauis sighed. "I don't doubt it. Very well."

They sat and Merlin recounted his morning. Gaius listened without interrupting, occasionally glancing towards Kessa. Now that Merlin explained who she was, Gaius was surprised that he did not notice the resemblance earlier. Especially once she grew bored with the tale after a few minutes and started fidgeting. Eventually she gave up trying to sit still and slipped away from the table to explore the rest of the room.

Once Merlin had concluded explaining the day's events, they sat in silence for a minute. Gaius needed the time to wrap his mind around it all. It was certainly not what he was expecting to hear. He had so many questions. He glanced at the king. Unfortunately, most of his questions could not be asked or answered in the monarch's presence. Before he could try to figure out how to ask his questions, there was a knock on the door. The three men looked towards the door as Gwen stepped in, closing the door behind her. Arthur stood as she entered the room.

Gwen eyed Merlin with obvious curiosity. "Elyan told me what happened," she said. "At first I did not believe it. But if anyone was able to find this sort of trouble, it would be you."

Merlin smiled. "Should I be offended by that remark?"

Gwen smiled back at him. "It was not intended to be an offence, merely an observation. You have a curious knack for getting yourself into interesting situations."

Merlin laughed at that. "Better interesting than boring."

"That is a matter of perspective," Arthur said, crossing his arms and giving his manservant a stern look. He looked back at his wife. "Where is Elyan?"

"He said that he was going to go out with Leon to finish the patrol. They are also planning to keep an eye out for our Merlin while they are at it." Arthur nodded and Gwen continued. "Elyan also mentioned something about a child," she said, eagerly looking forward to meeting her friend's daughter.

The four adults turned to scan the room for the girl. Kessa was standing on her tiptoes, fingering a small, green jar just out of her reach in an attempt to pull it down. Merlin and Gaius both started, recognizing what was in that particular vial.

"Kestrel!" Merlin barked, standing up and striding over to her. At her full name, the girl jumped bumping the jar enough to cause it to fall to the ground, barely missing her head on the way down. It shattered on the floor, spilling the liquid components. Merlin quickly pulled her away from the mess and scanned her to see if she got any on her. Once satisfied that she did not get splashed, he glared down at her. "I thought I told you not to touch anything!"

Her lip started to quiver. "I didn't mean to break it."

"If you hadn't been trying to grab it, it wouldn't have fallen in the first place. You could have been hurt!"

"It was a pretty color. I thought it was a jar of sweets," she said.

"Sweets? That's a poison! If you had asked before touching it, I could have told you."

Her eyes widened and she looked down at her feet. "I'm sorry."

"You would have been if it had landed on you," Merlin said. The girl gave a sob. Merlin sighed and scooped her up as she cried on his shoulder. "I thought we talked about this earlier today. You need to learn to listen."

She mumbled something incomprehensible through her tears. Merlin walked up to his old room and placed her on the bed. She drew her knees up to her chin and buried her face in her skirt. "I will come get you in five minutes. Do not move from this bed until I return. Understood?"

Kessa nodded without lifting her head. Merlin stood for a moment looking at her. He closed his eyes, and probed her with his magic to make doubly sure that she did not get any of the poison on her or her clothes. She was clean. Well, of any poison at least. She would definitely need a bath sometime in the near future. But he would worry about that later.

"Once I come back, we'll go find something to eat, okay." She didn't respond. Merlin sighed and went back down to the main room, leaving the door open so he could keep an eye on her. As he glanced around the room, he saw Gaius already at work carefully cleaning up the mess.

"Sorry about that," he said.

"Not a problem," Gaius assured him. "Accidents do happen."

"Do you need help?" Merlin asked.

"I'm nearly done," Gaius replied. "It is not the first time I've had to clean a spill; it will not be the last." Gaius looked up from what he was doing and fixed Merlin with his trademark look. "Especially with you living here. You've broken your share of jars and vials, too."

Merlin blinked. "Yes, but that was usually from clumsiness; not deliberate disobedience." Gaius' eyebrow raised. "Usually," Merlin amended. Gaius snorted and returned his attention to finishing his task.

"If that girl has a knack for trouble, it would seem that she comes by it honestly," Gaius muttered. Merlin chose to ignore that comment. The two royals smiled at the comment but were a bit at a loss. Seeing Merlin play the stern, disciplinary father figure was not a role they expected out of the carefree servant. Gwen couldn't help but wonder what else time had changed in her friend.

Arthur on the other hand, was busy trying to think of the best way to bring the conversation around to something that might dissipate the tension in the room. "You called her 'Kestrel' a moment ago. I thought her name was Kessa."

Merlin nodded. "It is. Kestrel is her full name. But I only use it when she is in serious trouble. Despite what you may have seen just now, it actually doesn't happen too often, thankfully. I think that she is just tired, hungry, and confused. I know this can't be easy on her."

"So," Arthur started, "Your name is Merlin, and you have a daughter named Kestrel?" Arthur raised his eyebrow.

Merlin gave an exasperated sigh followed by a wry grin. "It was her mother's idea," he said, shaking his head. "I think she thought it would be cute. And after," he stopped himself and then continued, "well, I couldn't say 'no.'"

"I think it's a lovely name," Gwen said. Gaius finished cleaning the spill and came over to join them.

"I think it's been about five minutes now," Merlin said. "I'm going to go get her." He looked towards the other three. "We haven't eaten since breakfast. As I told you, we were interrupted just before we were able to eat lunch. Do you think we can run down to the kitchens and try to convince the cook to share some food before we discuss anything further?"

"I would be happy to go down and grab something for all of us," Gwen said. She smiled at Merlin, "I'm afraid if you went down looking the way you do, and with a daughter, it may cause a bit of confusion."

Merlin sighed but then gave his friend a tired smile. "Probably. Thank you, Gwen."

"You mentioned it was her birthday?" Arthur asked. Merlin nodded, surprised that the king had remembered that detail. Arthur gave a nod and turned back towards his wife. "Perhaps the kitchen has an extra sweet that you can bring back for her." Gwen nodded, giving her husband an approving smile and went to go make the request from the kitchen.

"Why Arthur," Merlin said, "that's actually really considerate of you."

"You do not have to sound so surprised, _Mer_ lin," Arthur said, mimicking what the other man said earlier. Merlin just grinned and headed up to the small bedroom to retrieve his daughter.

She was still sitting curled up right where he left her. He paused in the doorway, looking in at her. He absolutely hated disciplining her. He knew discipline was necessary, but that did not stop him from feeling slightly guilty and altogether unhappy about it. He hated seeing her upset, but, he'd hate seeing her seriously injured even more. Merlin closed the door and sat on the bed, gently rubbing her back. She stiffened when she felt his touch but then curled up next to him, burying her face in his shirt. He pulled her onto his lap. They sat like that for a moment. Before Merlin gently said, "You know why I was upset, right?"

Kessa sniffed and nodded. "Yes," she whispered. "I'm sorry."

"I know," Merlin said.

"Do you hate me?" She asked in a trembling voice.

"What? Of course not! What gave you that idea?"

She shrugged. "But would you have preferred a puppy?"

"A puppy?" he asked in bemusement, wondering slightly where she got some of these ideas. "Why would you say that?"

"Prince Loholt said that he would have preferred a puppy."

"Well, the prince is a cabbage-head," Merlin said firmly. "He takes after his father that way."

Kessa giggled. "So you wouldn't trade me for a puppy?"

"Certainly not. I wouldn't trade you for anything."

"What about 100 gold pieces?"

"Not even for 100 gold pieces."

"200 gold pieces?"

"Nope."

"1,000 gold pieces"

Merlin smiled and shook his head. Kessa grinned up at him. She was on a role.

"A million, million gold pieces?"

Merlin laughed. "Not even a million, million gold pieces."

Kessa flung open her arms. "What about all the gold _and_ the jewels in the whole world?"

"Hmm," Merlin said, he put his finger on his chin and pretended to think about it. "The gold _and_ the jewels?"

"Papa!" she shrieked.

He laughed and drew her into a hug. "Okay, not even for all the gold _and_ the jewels." She giggled and then he felt her sigh. "Are you ready to go back downstairs? The queen has gone to fetch us lunch. She should be back soon."

Kessa's eyes lit up at the prospect of lunch. "Oh, yes. And I'll be good. I promise."

Merlin grinned and ruffled her hair. "Don't make promises you can't keep."

She pouted. "I can, too, be good!"

"I know you can, I'm teasing." He opened the door and she skipped out of the room. He was about to follow her when he had a thought. She would need something to play with to keep her from getting bored, and, by extension, keep her out of trouble. He knew Gaius didn't have anything appropriate for a small child to play with, but he certainly did. He shut the door and crept over to the hiding place under the floor board. He felt a bit nostalgic at the furtive sneaking around with the king just downstairs. It had been a long time since he had to be sneaky about much of anything and it almost felt kind of fun. When they got back to their own time, he should start sneaking around more, for old time's sake. He glanced towards the closed door and lifted the floorboard. There was the magic book, the staff, a few other odds and ends he had collected, and the carved dragon his father had made. He pulled out the dragon and carefully replaced the floor board. He hoped that one little dragon toy kept Kessa occupied and out of trouble until he could find a few more toys for her.

He came out of the room and stopped at the top of the steps. He chuckled at the scene. Arthur and Gaius were sitting at the table with Kessa kneeling on the bench next to the king. She was prattling on about a mile a minute and gesturing wildly, nearly falling off the bench in the process. Gaius was nodding solemnly to whatever she was saying, but Merlin could see barely suppressed amusement at the girl's antics. Arthur meanwhile, was leaning slightly away from her. His expression was a mix between utter confusion and slight wariness, as though he wasn't quite sure what to make of this small bundle of energy and was trying to figure out the best way to escape. The king was the first to admit that he knew absolutely nothing about children. For the most part, he was happy letting others deal with them.

Merlin's chuckle brought the attention of all three people at the table up to him. He could see no small amount of relief on Arthur's face that Merlin was back and could handle the girl. "Papa!" Kessa said excitedly, "I was telling them all about Sparkles!" She bounced on her knees and grinned.

"Remember how we sit with our butts to the bench," he reminded her.

She automatically started to shift off her knees so she was sitting properly, but in the process, lost her balance and toppled onto the ground. She popped back up again and raced over to her father. "And I told them how she is going to grow a big gold horn and learn to fly and we'll go on all sorts of adventures together!" She continued, not at all phased by her fall and continuing speaking as though she was never interrupted.

"Just as long as you are home from your adventures by dinner," Merlin said. Then he handed her the dragon. "Here. Why don't you go play with this over there."

She took the wooden dragon, examined it for a moment and then beamed up at her father. "Thank you!" she said, and raced over to the rug in front of the fire place. She plopped down and started to play with the carving.

Merlin smiled at her and then joined the other two men at the table.

"What was that?" Arthur asked, still mildly in shock from the whirlwind of six-year old enthusiasm he had just been exposed to.

Merlin chuckled. "She was telling you about Sparkles?" the other two men nodded.

"Although, I must admit that while she spoke for several minutes, I am not entirely sure what it is she actually said," Gaius said with a small smile.

Merlin laughed. "I don't blame you. Basically, one of the mares in the stable gave birth to a pure white foal. Kessa is convinced it is a unicorn and equally convinced that they are going to be best friends."

"I see," Arthur said, although from his expression, it was clear that he actually did not.

The door opened and Gwen entered followed by a couple of servants. Merlin and Gaius quickly cleared the clutter off the table as the servants set the trays of food down, all the while staring at Merlin and trying to look like they weren't. They filled plates for the king and queen while Merlin dished out food for Kessa, Gaius and himself. Gwen dismissed the servants, who continued to glance at Merlin over their shoulders as they left the room. One of them was spending so much time watching Merlin, that he missed the door entirely and slammed into the wall next to it. He turned red and fled the room, closing the door behind him.

Merlin called Kessa over to the table and they all dug in. As they ate, Kessa happily chattered away about whatever seemed to pop into her head. Merlin had to remind her several times to take a break from talking to eat her food. After one of these moments, Arthur said, "Well, if there was any doubt as to whose daughter she is, it is certainly gone now." Gwen and Gaius smirked while Merlin just shrugged and fondly ruffled the girl's hair.

"Mother said something about cosmic justice, but I'm sure I don't know what she meant." The other three adults laughed as Kessa looked up questioningly at her father. He shrugged at her and she went back to her food, putting it off as just another one of those odd things that grown-ups seem to do.

"I can see a lot of you in her," Gwen said. She turned to address Kessa, "you seem to be very much like your father." Gwen was rewarded with identical grins from both daughter and father.

"It makes me feel bad for the girl's mother," Arthur said. "Who is she, anyway?" At that question both Merlin and Kessa stilled. Kessa looked uncertainly at her father.

"No one that you know," Merlin said calmly. "I have not met her yet, in this time."

Gwen, Arthur and Gaius glanced at each other at the sudden shift in the atmosphere.

Kessa frowned down at her plate. "It's my fault," she said, suddenly.

Merlin looked at her in surprise. "What's your fault?"

"That Momma's gone."

Merlin blinked. "What gave you that idea?"

Kessa looked up at him. "Lisanor said that if wasn't born, then Momma would still be here."

Merlin blinked again and then his eyes hardened. "Oh she did, did she. Well, I will be sure to have a talk with her." The young princess had been very close to Merlin's wife when she died. Lisanor had taken her death hard. But that was six years ago and Merlin couldn't imagine what would possess the princess to say something like that to Kessa. Merlin couldn't worry about that just now, however. He looked at his daughter who was forlornly poking at a couple of grapes on her plate. "Kessa, it is not your fault at all. Lisanor was just being mean. I don't blame you. Your mother certainly would not blame you. She loved you."

"She didn't even know me. Not really. Not for very long."

"Well, it doesn't take very long to fall in love with you, Kessa," Merlin said, smiling. She just looked at him. "I told you I wouldn't trade you for anything, and I meant it. Remember?"

Kessa thought about that and then gave him a small smile. "I remember." She paused a moment and then said, "I wish I could have known her."

Merlin put his arm around her and gave her a squeeze. "I wish you could have known her, too."

Silence reigned at the table for another moment before Kessa glanced at one of the untouched platters that had several pieces of honey cake on it. "Is that cake?" she asked, eyeing it.

Merlin smiled. He loved his daughter's ability to bounce back quickly. He wasn't sure if it was a unique trait of Kessa or if all six-year old's were so resilient. He reached over and served her a large piece of the sweet dessert. Once his daughter was happily shoveling the cake into her mouth, he glanced back up to see three pairs of sympathetic eyes.

Merlin winced and decided an explanation was in order. "There was a complication with the childbirth. I did everything I could but…" he trailed off. "Nothing could be done. She was gone a few hours after Kessa was born."

Arthur felt a pang of sympathy for his manservant and especially Kessa. He knew exactly how the young girl felt. Arthur himself had wondered as a child if he was somehow to blame for his own mother's death. His father, however, had done very little to assuage his fears. Not like how Merlin was handling it. Arthur couldn't help but be slightly jealous of Kessa for having a father that was so openly affectionate. Arthur couldn't help but wonder how he would have been different if Uther had been a bit more like Merlin in some ways. Then he scolded himself for even thinking something like that. Did he honestly just compare his own father to _Merlin_ , of all people? _Either someone has spiked my drink or I am more tired than I thought_ , Arthur thought to himself. He pushed that train of thought to a far back corner of his mind where he locked it up tight, and threw away the key.

"I'm so sorry," Gwen said to Merlin, unaware of the internal musings of her husband.

Merlin swallowed and shrugged. "It was a long time ago."

"It does not make it easier, my boy," Gaius said.

"No, but I have Kessa," he smiled down at the girl who had a honey glaze smeared over half her face. He sighed. "It's supposed to go into your mouth, Kes," he said, shaking his head.

She beamed, "It's really good!" she replied, as if that explained her current state of stickiness.

"How can you tell? I'm not sure enough made it to your tongue to actually taste." She grinned at him and took the last bite, then proceeded to lick the sweet glaze off her fingers. Merlin sighed, "I'm so glad I'm raising such a proper, well-mannered, young lady."

"If you're the one trying to teach her manners, _Mer_ lin, I'm not shocked that she is lacking in that department," Arthur said.

Merlin shot him a look before grabbing a clean rag, dunking it in the wash bin, and then proceeding to wipe Kessa's face and hands.

Once she was clean, she left to go back to the discarded toy dragon on the rug. Merlin snatched his own piece of the honey cake. "I wonder what rumors are being spread about me," he said.

"I'm not entirely sure, but when I went down to the kitchens talking ceased as soon as I entered the room, which makes me believe they were sharing some juicy bit of gossip. And once everyone found out who the food was for, there was no shortage of volunteers to help bring it up here," Gwen said.

"Yes," Merlin smirked, "I did notice the gawking."

"While you were up talking to Kessa," Arthur said, "Gaius and I were discussing the situation."

"Any ideas on what could have caused it?" Merlin asked Gaius.

Gaius sighed. "Not off the top of my head, no. I have never heard of anything quite like this before. There are some old legends where priestesses of the old religion would attempt to change history. But those were just stories. I've never heard of anyone taking them seriously. And if time travel were possible, I would have thought it would be used long before now, in order to prevent the purge." The others nodded. "I will have to do more research," he concluded.

"I will help you with that," Merlin said. Gaius nodded and they exchanged a significant look. It would also be a good opportunity to talk about some things that couldn't be discussed in front of anyone else.

"Meanwhile," Gwen said, "I suspect that this will take some time. A day or two at the least. We should figure out some accommodations for you and your daughter. Your bedroom is a bit small for both you and Kessa, and your younger self may show up at some point wanting his bed."

Arthur nodded "Merlin and Kessa can take one of the guest rooms. We are a bit crowded with the festival but we should have some smaller rooms available. I am more worried about how we will explain your presence here in the first place. It is terrible timing with the feast and festival starting."

"So sorry for the inconvenience," Merlin said rolling his eyes. But he conceded that Arthur had a point. The servants and townspeople would think the situation odd but wouldn't really make a fuss about it. They would be quite content to gossip about it for the next several months. All the nobles in town for the festival, on the other hand, could pose a problem. Many of them has similar views about magic that Uther did and would pitch a fit at the smallest hint of magic. "Kessa and I can make ourselves scarce," he said.

Arthur shook his head. "At this point, I don't think it will matter. Too many people have already seen you." Arthur said, "I will be interested to hear Gwaine's report from the tavern. Perhaps we can come up with a suitable story based on the rumors."

Merlin said, "I think we should just tell the truth. I don't think that Kessa is old enough to understand the need for secrecy. Any story we made up, she would probably forget." They all looked over at the girl in question.

She was still sitting on the rug, but she had abandoned the toy dragon in favor of different entertainment. Merlin felt his breath catch and his heart skipped a beat as he watched her create glowing, magical bubbles of a variety of different colors. She humming as she caused them to dance around her, in time to the tune. Merlin would have found the sight adorable if he hadn't been too busy panicking at how Arthur would react. "Kessa, no!" Merlin exclaimed. He jumped up and ran towards her. He scooped up the bewildered child. He held her tightly with his eyes closed, praying that Arthur would be understanding. He slowly turned to see Arthur standing, his eyes were wide, his mouth was open, and one hand had reached over to the hilt of his sword in an automatic reaction to magic. Although Merlin thought it a good sign that he had not drawn it. Gwen was seated with wide eyes and one hand over her mouth. Gaius closed his eyes and heaved a resigned sigh. He was the only one who did not look surprised.

"Arthur," Merlin said. His voice broke. "Please, let me explain."

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

I would like to thank everyone who has reviewed this story thus far. I appreciate that you have taken the time to leave a comment.

On another note, I was interested in finding a Beta reader and was not sure how that is done. If anyone has any suggestions, I would appreciate it.

I hope you enjoyed the chapter!


	8. Chapter 8: One Small Step

Chapter 8: One small step

The Past:

"That…she...you" Arthur stuttered, completely in shock. His eyes hardened and he pointed at Merlin and his daughter forcefully. "That was magic!" he shouted.

Kessa whimpered at the sound of the king's anger and buried her face in her father's neck. She only now remembered that she was told not to do any magic. But she could not understand why the king was so angry.

Merlin clutched Kessa even tighter to him. He wasn't sure if it was in an attempt to reassure the girl or if it was out of a desperate need to protect her. Probably both. "Arthur please," Merlin said, "it's not what you think."

"Not what I think!?" Arthur exclaimed. " _That girl_ just did magic!"

"Arthur," Merlin said again, desperately trying to explain. But Arthur would not let him speak.

"Magic is a vile, evil, dangerous, corrupting force and you let her perform sorcery in my kingdom!" the king yelled.

"Evil?!" Merlin spat, suddenly feeling his own temper rise. Still holding the girl, he drew himself up to his full height and glared at the king. "Hardly. She was making bubbles! How are bubbles evil? What harm could a few pink bubbles possibly do to anyone?"

"It doesn't matter the form magic takes. It can look innocent in order to draw you in. But all magic is evil at its core. As are all those who practice it!"

Merlin narrowed his eyes. "Is that you speaking, or your father?"

Arthur glared. "Both. My father was not wrong on his stance on magic."

"Your father was a tyrant, who murdered innocent people due to his own blind hatred!"

Now Arthur's eyes narrowed and the room seemed to drop in temperature at his fury. "I could have your head for that," he said.

"Then take it," Merlin hissed.

The two men glared. The air seemed to crackle with an invisible energy brought on by the flaring tempers. Nobody moved; nobody even dared to breathe. Even Kessa was still and silent in the heat of the anger permeating the room.

Gwen nervously licked her lips and then stepped forward, placing a hesitant hand on her husband's arm. "Arthur," she said softly. "She's just a child. _Merlin's_ child. And he is our friend. We owe him the chance to explain." When Arthur met her gaze, she continued, appealing to his sense of justice, "At the very least, they deserve a fair trial, as would any of our people."

Arthur met her gaze for a moment. He could admit that much of his anger was out of an instinctual reaction that had been ingrained in him since birth. But another part was out of the sheer idiocy Merlin was showing. How could his servant, his _friend_ , a man he had known for years, allow his own daughter to be corrupted in such a way? He did not look surprised by the girl's magic, merely defensive. What had happened over the years to cause Merlin to side with magic to an extent that he allows his own daughter to practice it at such a young age? Why would Merlin betray him in such a way? Arthur had had enough of betrayal. But, as he thought through Gwen's words, the king could admit that even the darkest criminals received fair trials if they were able to be brought in. And Arthur did not want this to become public if it did not have to. Suddenly another thought hit him, if he had to arrest this Merlin and his daughter, how was he going to explain this to the younger Merlin. The one that had not yet betrayed him. Arthur closed his eyes as the complications of this discovery made themselves known to him. No, Gwen was right, the more he could figure out in private, the better for all concerned.

Arthur gave the queen a curt nod. She backed off but he could still see the worry in her eyes. Although he could not be sure if the worry he saw was out of fear of magic, or out of concern for Merlin and his daughter. Probably a bit of both. Arthur snapped his gaze back to Merlin. "Explain," he said, his hand moving back to the hilt of the sword in an obvious warning of what he would do should he not like the explanation. Though even through this action, a very small voice at the back of his head questioned if he could actually go through with upholding the law at this particular time. He repressed it and firmly put on the mantle of king.

Merlin was silent as he watched the interaction between the royal couple, watching Arthur's face for any sign of what he was thinking. But while it was obvious the king was warring with a variety of thoughts, those thoughts were not making themselves visible on the monarch's face, despite Merlin's many years of knowing the king. Or perhaps Merlin was unable to read Arthur because he was distracted by his own raging emotion. He was trying to simultaneously calm his temper and think through the best way to go about this conversation with his head, and, more importantly, his daughter's head, intact. After Arthur's command to explain, Merlin only took a moment more to steady himself. He also needed to be prepared for a quick escape should the conversation go south. Merlin fervently hoped it would not. That would complicate things to a point that history itself might be changed. As it was, history could very well be changed. How could he explain anything without risking changing everything? There was no way around it. He would just have to do the best he could and hope he didn't screw things up entirely. This was going to be a disaster.

"You believe the druids to be a peaceful people. You even allow them to live without fear of persecution in your kingdom, correct," Merlin said, trying to start the explanation with something Arthur was familiar with.

"Yes," Arthur conceded, "I have made peace with the druids."

"And you do not forbid them from performing their normal rituals within their settlements."

Arthur frowned, thinking through his response. "I do not regulate the religious practices of the druids when they are within their own homes," he said slowly. "But they know they are not permitted to flaunt these practices outside of their settlements. They have respected this agreement." Arthur frowned, catching on to where Merlin was going with this. "But your daughter is not a druid."

"No," Merlin admitted, "but her mother was."

"You married a druid?" Gwen asked, intrigued.

"I did," Merlin said, nodding.

Arthur blinked. "Why?" he blurted out. Any residual anger was momentarily forgotten at this surprising news.

Merlin just raised an eyebrow.

"I mean," Arthur said, trying to recover from that admittedly inane question. "I thought you were afraid of magic. And you always seemed so nervous around the druids."

Merlin was unable to stop his snort of amusement. But before he could respond, Kessa chose that moment to recover from her earlier fear. It probably helped that nobody was shouting anymore. While the atmosphere in the room was still tense, it was no longer caustic. She turned her head to glare at Arthur. "My Papa's not afraid of anything!" she said, offended that King Arthur would suggest such a thing.

Merlin smiled at her defense of his honor and gently shushed her. He set her down on the ground but still made sure that he was between his daughter and his king. She clutched the back of his robe and peeked around him as she glared at the king in a disapproving manner.

Arthur frowned at the child, a bit nervous that a sorceress, even a mini one, was glaring at him in such a way. Glares from sorceress never seemed to end well for him. He resolved to ignore her for now and brought his eyes back up to Merlin.

"It is surprising to me that you would align yourselves with the druids in such a way," Arthur said, continuing from his earlier thought, from before the child interrupted. "And even more surprising that you would allow your own daughter to learn that particular…" he searched for a diplomatic term, "skill."

"Arthur," Merlin said, "twenty-five years is a long time. There have been many changes. For one, Druids are far more frequent visitors to the city. They are treated with respect by all of Camelot's citizens." Merlin hesitated and then continued, carefully watching the king's reaction, "the views of magic have also changed slightly."

Arthur's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean?" He did not think he liked where this was going.

"While it is true that there is dark and evil magic out there, it has been recognized that not all magic is this way. As you already know, the druids practice light magic and have never been corrupted. They remain peaceful. And they are no different from any other man."

"What are you saying, Merlin?"

Merlin looked steadily at Arthur, "You will eventually come to realize this," he said, "and one day, you will legalize certain types of magic."

"I, what?" he asked, incredulous. "I would never legalize magic! Not after all the pain that magic caused! Magic is evil!"

Merlin resisted the urge to sigh at the repeated propaganda. "Not all magic," He said patiently. "some magic is evil, yes. But there is also magic that is good." He caught Arthur's disbelieving look and cut him off before he could protest. Merlin needed to help Arthur to understand. "Magic is a force of nature. An element. Like water or fire. While the elements can sometimes be destructive, they are also very beneficial. They are not in themselves good or evil. They just are. And we could not survive without them.

"We survived just fine without magic," Arthur protested. "We have for over 20 years."

Merlin smiled and shook his head. "No. You only think you have." Oh the irony.

"Are you telling me that I have not survived the past 28 years of my life? I must say, I look awfully good for a dead man."

Merlin could not prevent the eye roll. "Of course you survived. But you have not been completely magic free. Magic is in all life. In the land itself. In the air. Some people are more sensitive to it than others. Most people are completely oblivious. But that does not mean it is not there." He didn't think Arthur would appreciate the knowledge that _Magic_ did in fact save his life many times. One day he would know everything. But this was not that day.

Arthur frowned. "Since when did you become such an expert on magic, Merlin?"

"You did legalize it," Merlin reminded Arthur with a shrug. "Someone had to become an expert."

Arthur shook his head. "I still cannot believe that I would do such a thing." A large part of him was suspecting some sort of trick. But the way Merlin was fervently explaining all this, he seemed so genuine. Arthur believed that _Merlin_ believed that all he was saying was true. So was it? Or had Merlin been deceived?

"You didn't legalize all magic," Merlin explained, answering Arthur's spoken objection, "just the types known to be good and useful, such as healing. And it certainly didn't happen without plenty of deliberation. You carefully weighed the costs and benefits, and you spent a significant amount of time in research and discussion with the druids and other magic users before coming to this decision. But the druids were eventually invited to teach us some basic healing spells. And your kingdom has prospered and flourished because of it. Plagues are virtually non-existent now." Merlin hesitated again before continuing. "A druid even came to tutor me in some healing spells."

Arthur stared, his mouth hung open before sputtering, " _you_ learned magic?"

Merlin shrugged, "I took over from Gaius as court physician. It only made sense for me to know as many healing spells as possible."

"You became a sorcerer?" Arthur asked in disbelief. He had a very hard time imagining Merlin, of all people, doing magic. Defending magic was one thing. But actually practicing? _Merlin_?!

Merlin just shrugged, "I don't know that I'd call myself a sorcerer," he said, "but I did learn some healing spells from the druids. They came in very helpful. I even managed to save your life once or twice with magic." Merlin was very proud of himself that he was able to say all of that with a straight face. He didn't even lie hardly at all, unless you counted lying by omission.

"Before the purge, I used many healing spells, myself. They do make the job of a physician far easier. There is certainly benefit to the kingdom when people can be healed through magic. Magic can be used to heal otherwise fatal injuries and diseases, as well and speed up the recovery process," Gaius said, trying to defend Merlin's position as best he could without giving anything away.

Arthur pinched the bridge of his nose. He no longer felt the intense rage and fear he had a few moments ago. Now what he felt was intense irritation at his idiot manservant and an equally intense headache forming. Why was everything so complicated when Merlin was involved?

"I cannot simply ignore the fact that magic was performed in my presence. Regardless of what future laws may, or may not be, the fact is that I need to abide by current laws. This being said…" Arthur was interrupted by a knock on the door. "What now?" he asked in exasperation.

"Forgive me, sire," Percival said, he stuck his head in the room. "But I thought you would want to see this immediately."

Arthur nodded and beckoned the knight to enter. Gwaine followed behind him. Arthur spared Gwaine a glance and then looked towards Percival. "You were sent to look for Merlin. What did you find?"

Percival wordless held out a small picnic basket and a bag that Arthur recognized as the one Merlin usually took to gather herbs for Gaius.

"Merlin took those with him when he left this morning," Gaius said, worry evident in his voice.

Arthur took the bag from the knight. He contemplated it for a moment before giving the large knight a serious look. "Merlin was nowhere to be found," Percival stated, answering the unspoken question. "I found one set of footprints near these items. I believe they were Merlin's." He turned his gaze to the older version of his friend. "The footprints seemed to approach a tree that these were sitting under. The tree had a very large scorch mark on it."

"Scorch marks?" Gwen asked, frightened for her friend. She did not like the sound of that. "What does that mean?"

Gauis turned towards the Merlin that was currently with them. "Were there any similar marks when you arrived in this time?" he asked.

Merlin frowned. He did not remember any marks in the area where he and Kessa had arrived. "I do not believe so. And I was looking for things out of the ordinary because I thought that I had been attacked. I certainly would have noticed something like that."

"What does that mean for our Merlin?" Gwaine asked, his expression serious.

"You don't suppose…" Gwen couldn't finish that thought. "I mean, he is alright, right?"

As one, they turned to the older Merlin. He frowned, and gazed at Gaius. "I would think," Merlin said slowly, "that if something had happened to the past version of myself, that it would affect the current me. So the fact that I am currently alive and well is probably a good indication that my younger self is not harmed. At least not permanently so."

Arthur nodded. "That seems to be sound logic. As long as you are here, we can be certain that our Merlin is at least alive."

"Well, that's something," Gwaine said, although he didn't look pleased about it. "But I would prefer to know for sure that he is safe."

"Considering that he seems to have vanished, I think that the most likely scenario is that he and I switched places. He is most likely in the future. With the future versions of all of you. So I think that they are probably keeping him safe." Merlin smiled. "If I had to guess, they are most likely being extremely over protective and driving the younger me crazy." Merlin frowned as he thought about what Percival had reported. "So I think that he is probably as safe as possible for now. But I cannot fathom what the scorch mark would be from. Perhaps it means that the spell that caused this originated from this end." He looked at Arthur, "I will have to investigate it myself to be sure."

Arthur hesitated. "I am not sure that I can let you do that."

Merlin sighed, "Arthur," he said.

Gwaine just frowned. "Why not? Percival and I can go with him. We'll make sure to keep him safe, if that's what you're worried about." Percival nodded in agreement.

"That is not what I'm worried about," Arthur said. "I cannot have a known criminal wandering freely in my kingdom."

Merlin rolled his eyes, "Oh, for the love of…"he muttered.

"Criminal?" Percival asked in confusion.

"Merlin?" Gwaine asked, eyebrows high. "What, exactly is his crime?"

Arthur crossed his arms defensively. "Harboring a sorceress."

Now Merlin crossed his arms, too. Irritated with the hardheaded, stubborn, mule-skulled, prat of a king.

Gwen glanced at Gaius who just sighed and shook his head.

Gwaine and Percival looked at each other and then Gwaine pointedly looked around the room. "What sorceress? He just got here. How could he be harboring a sorceress?"

"He brought her with him," Arthur said, letting out all the frustration and irritation from the past several hours. "His daughter did magic. Right in front of us. She was practically flaunting it!"

"Arthur," Gwen murmured. She could tell that he was getting wound up again. And that tended to result in him saying things that he did not mean. She laid a hand on his arm to calm him down.

Gwaine blinked. Stared at the girl. Stared at Arthur and then carefully schooled his expression. "I see," Gwaine said, keeping his face blank. "And what dark and dangerous magic did the little sorceress perform?"

Arthur hesitated. He was reluctant to say what she did to cause him to react in such a manner. He was very much aware of how ridiculous it would sound. Perhaps he could phrase it in such a way to make it sound a bit more impressive than it actually was. Unfortunately, Merlin did not allow him the time to think of something.

"She made magic bubbles," Merlin told the knights, watching their faces closely. Percival looked more curious than anything. But Gwaine's face seemed to twitch slightly before smoothing out into an expressionless mask once more. The flicker of emotion was gone too fast for Merlin to see what it was. But if Gwaine reacted to magic now as he did when he first found out about Merlin's magic, then…

"Bubbles?" Gwaine asked in an even tone.

"Pink ones," Merlin said, nodding.

"Ah," Gwaine replied, nodding along with Merlin. "Now I can see why the king was so upset. Everyone knows of the dangers of magic pink bubbles. The evil they spread is legendary. I heard that it was pink bubbles that brought about the fall of the Roman Empire."

"No," Merlin corrected him, relieved to see that the knight was pretty much reacting the same way as he did the first time. "It was the purple bubbles that was Rome's downfall. The pink bubbles are the ones that are directly responsible for the sinking of Atlantis."

"Yes, that's right. Thank you for correcting me. History has never been my strong suit."

Arthur glared at the two of them. "Are you quite finished?" he asked. Merlin and Gwaine grinned at each other. Arthur could tell that Gwen, Gaius, and Percival were trying to suppress smiles. And the little witch was giggling at him. He was a king! Arthur scowled at her but it didn't seem to faze her. Didn't she know better than to giggle at kings? No, probably not. Not with Merlin as a father.

"The law is the law," Arthur said. "The law clearly states that all magic is illegal and not to be practiced within the borders of Camelot."

"Arthur," Merlin said with a sigh. Gwaine tensed and opened his mouth to protest.

Arthur held up his hand. "Do not interrupt me." Gwaine shut his mouth but continued to glare daggers at Arthur. He was willing to hear out the king, but only if he liked what he was hearing.

"As I was saying," Arthur continued, adapting the expression he usually wore when performing his kingly duties. "The laws are clear on this matter. However, the events that you explained and all that has happened recently also need to be considered. Therefore, I will hold off on passing any sort of judgement until such a time when I feel as though I have had adequate time to think through my decision with a clear head. However, for the protection of my people, I ask that in the meantime, the law will be followed and magic will not be performed until you get back to your own time." A slight glower broke through the façade. "And then my older self can deal with you and I won't have to worry about it for another 25 years."

Merlin closed his eyes and sighed, a relieved smile playing across his features. "Thank you, Arthur."

"But Merlin, I can't have her running around doing magic. If someone does catch her, I will be forced to address the matter publicly and immediately."

Merlin nodded. "I know. I will make sure it does not happen again. Not until we get home." He gave his daughter a stern look. "Is that clear?"

Kessa swallowed and nodded. She hadn't understood before why her father told her no magic. But she certainly did now.

"It is probably best if neither of you go anywhere unaccompanied by one of us" Arthur added.

"I understand," Merlin said. And he truly did. If Kessa did slip again, he did not want her to be alone. He wanted her to be with someone he trusted. And magic aside, it was also probably for the best if people did not see too much of them anyway. Especially not until they figure out why this happed and who caused it. The scorch mark that Percival saw on the tree bothered Merlin. What was it from? And was whoever cast the spell that left it still a threat? Did they know that he had switched places with his younger self or was it an unexpected side effect of the spell going wrong? Until he had answers, he wanted his daughter guarded at all times. And Arthur, too, for that matter. If this was a result of someone trying to get him out of the way in order to get to Arthur, that someone would have a very big surprise coming.

"That's settled then," Arthur said with a nod. "Percival, how far away was that tree you found?"

"About an hour's ride."

"I see. Gaius, would you be able to travel with Sir Percival and Sir Gwaine to inspect it. Your knowledge of the arcane arts might come in handy."

"I can go," Gaius said, somewhat reluctantly, not looking forward to a long ride on a horse, "but I think that Merlin should also come." At Arthur's slight frown, the physician continued. "It is his past, sire. Perhaps seeing this site might stir up some memories that may be helpful. And if he does have some knowledge of magic from the druids, as he said, that may also prove to be helpful." Gaius raised an eyebrow at his ward and Merlin just shrugged.

Arthur thought for a moment and then turned to Merlin. "I can see the wisdom in this, but what of your daughter? I do not think it would be appropriate to bring her along. And she should not stay by herself."

"I can watch over her for a few hours," Gwen volunteered, smiling at the child. Kessa brightened up at that. Arthur frowned.

"Really?" She asked. "Can I go with Queen Gwen, Papa? Please?" before he could answer she turned back to the queen. "Can we go to the market to look at the dresses? And the face colorings?" She leaned forward as though to tell the queen a secret. "I love my Papa, but he doesn't know how to go shopping properly. He shops like a _boy_." She said, exasperation in her voice.

Merlin quirked an eyebrow at his daughter. "I am a boy."

"Exactly," Kessa said, throwing her hands up.

Merlin shook his head. "It is probably best not to go out to the market right now," he said. The girl's face fell.

"Please?" she asked.

"Not right now, Kessa. Maybe when we get home."

Gwen laughed. "Don't worry," Gwen said, "we can have something of a girl's day here in the castle. I'll let you wear some of my own face colorings. And I can do your hair, if you'd like." The girl's face brightened again.

"Oh, yes!" she said.

"No," Arthur said. While he could admit that the young girl had done nothing to harm anyone, he did not want his wife to be alone with a magic user of any age. He did not fully trust the child. Magic was dangerous. And even if she did not mean to, what if she did something to accidentally hurt Gwen?

"Arthur," Merlin said gently, "I know how difficult this is for you. And you have shown remarkable patience and understanding with all of this. I know your feelings about magic and I am touched and I am proud that you are demonstrating such mercy towards us. I know it's not easy. I know. But I can promise you that Kessa loves both you and Gwen like family. You both had a hand in helping me to raise her. And she would never do anything to harm either one of you."

Arthur stared at Merlin, thoughts and emotions were at war within him and he felt as though he were being pulled in so many directions. On the one hand, he had all the teachings from his father and everything he grew up thinking and doing. Magic was evil, treacherous, and dangerous. At best, it was not to be trusted. And yet. And yet here was Merlin. A man that he trusted more than any other man. A man who had been beside him, through thick and thin, for years. He had witnessed Arthur's weakest and strongest moments and had never left his side, supporting and encouraging through it all. Just as Arthur knew magic was evil, he also knew that Merlin was not. But how did he know that this man and this child was actually Merlin and his daughter. He had just been taking this situation by faith. But what if it was still some sort of trick?

"Arthur," Gwen said, "I assure you that we will be fine. She's just a little girl."

"With magic," Arthur protested.

"I promise not to do any magic," Kessa said. "I won't forget again."

Arthur stared at the girl. Searching her eyes for some sort of deceit. He did not see any. He saw nothing but an innocent child. He sighed, hoping he was not making the biggest mistake of his life. "Are you sure you want to play nursemaid to Merlin's child? You are a queen. Watching children is the job of servants." But even as he asked this, he knew what Gwen would say.

"Arthur," Gwen said with a smile, "nothing would please me more." At Arthur's slightly reluctant nod, Gwen held out her hand to the girl. With a grin, Kessa took it.

"Alright, Kessa," Merlin said, "you behave. I don't want to come back and hear that you gave Gwen a hard time."

"I'll be good, Papa, I promise."

Melrin nodded and then looked at Gwen, "Let me know if she gives you any trouble."

"We'll be fine, Merlin."

"Right. Actually, before you go," Merlin turned to Gwaine, "did you hear anything in the tavern that we should be aware of?"

"Well, the rumor mill is going strong. You were recognized as yourself. Which isn't that surprising because you don't look all that different. And people have all sorts of wild theories. Most of them involve some sort of magical attack with an aging spell. But there are some people that think that you are a changeling or a shapeshifter who didn't do a very good job of it. A few others seem to think that you are some sort of copy. Like you've managed to split yourself in two, or something. Time travel was also suggested."

Merlin snorted. "What are the explanations for Kessa?"

"Nobody really mentioned her. I don't think that she was really noticed."

"Good," Merlin said. "That's actually good. I don't want her to be noticed. She'll be safer that way."

"She may not have been noticed in the town, but I know that she was in the courtyard," Percival said. "Her presence and connection to you will probably make it to the town eventually."

"So what are we going to tell people?" Gwaine asked.

"The truth," Merlin replied. "If people ask, we will explain that we are from a future Camelot. There is no point trying to hide my identity now. And if it was just me, an aging spell would be a good cover story. But unfortunately, it would not explain Kessa's presence or why she calls me 'Papa.'"

Everyone turned to Arthur to see if he agreed. He nodded. "We do not have much of a choice, at this point." He pinched the bridge of his nose. "We should have disguised you before coming back, but it's too late now." He looked at the rest of them. "No one outside of this room is to know about the girl's magic."

"Well, yeah," Gwaine said, "I think that's obvious."

Arthur sighed, "In that case, I need to meet with the council and explain the situation. I will also probably need to do some damage control with the visiting nobles." He glared at Merlin. "Why did you have to choose this week for this to happen?"

"Well, you know how much I love to make your life difficult, sire."

Arthur scowled, "and you know how much I love putting you in the stocks."

"I do. But if you put me in the stocks, then I won't be able to investigate that tree and try to figure out what caused this in the first place until after. Which means you'll be stuck with me for even longer.

"Apparently, I'm stuck with you for at least twenty-five more years," Arthur muttered. "What did I do to deserve such a fate?"

"I don't know," Merlin said. He grinned, "but it must have been something really great!"

"Shut up, Merlin." Arthur said as he left the room. He heard snickers behind him but chose to ignore it. He had more important things to worry about than cheeky, old manservants. But at the same time, he was secretly relieved to see that despite all the differences the future seemed to hold, there were some things that did remain the same.


	9. Chapter 9: Answers or Questions?

Chapter 9: Answers or Questions?

The future:

"If you are going to pass as, well, yourself, there are a few things that you are going to have to know. Names of certain people for instance. Like the people of the council, the new knights, my children." Arthur hesitated. "your daughter."

Merlin's mouth dropped and his eyes widened. "My what?"

"You have a daughter," Gwiane said. "She's six today."

Merlin just stared at them, unable to fully comprehend what they were saying. "A daughter?" he asked. "But, how?"

"Well, Merlin," Arthur said, "When a man and a woman love each other very much…"

Merlin felt his face get red and cut him off before he could finish that sentence. "That's not what I meant," he snapped.

Gwen shot a disapproving look at her husband before turning to Merlin. "You fell in love, Merlin. You got married, and you had a daughter. And she is a beautiful little girl. Her name is Kestrel, but everyone calls her Kessa. That's actually who you, the older you, I mean, were with today when you…well, switched places I suppose. You were taking her on a picnic. Just the two of you."

Merlin stared at them for another moment. His mind was racing and he was having a hard time processing it all. He couldn't imagine falling in love. Not since Freya. Let alone getting married and having children. How on earth did he even manage to find the time to meet anyone? "But who is… I mean, the only girl I've ever…" he trailed off, not really wanting to talk about Freya. And not knowing if the others knew about her anyway.

Hunith reached over and grabbed his hand. "Oh, my sweet boy," she said. She had been devastated when Merlin had told her, years later, about a cursed druid girl that he had fallen in love with. And the tragedy that had followed. Losing Freya had caused Merlin to close off his heart to any other girl in order to protect himself from losing someone again. And then when he did allow himself to love again, she was also taken. Hunith blinked back tears. It wasn't fair. She wished with her whole heart that she could have protected him from such heartache. And she wished she could protect him from finding out about another tragedy that would befall him. But if he found out from someone else that his wife had been dead for six years, he would be hurt and angry that they kept such a thing from him.

"You haven't met her yet." Hunith said gently. "But she was a wonderful woman and you loved each other very much."

Merlin met her eyes. "Was?" he whispered.

Hunith swallowed back her tears. "I'm so sorry," she said. "I wish…" she trailed off. Merlin swallowed and nodded. "Her name was Aderyn."

"Aderyn," Merlin repeated softly. "How did she…?"

Hunith shook her head. "I don't think I should tell you that."

"But, if I know in advance. Then maybe I could stop it."

"And what if she died to save someone else? What if her death meant that your daughter would live?"

Merlin hesitated. He hadn't met either one of them, and yet, he already felt protective over them. It was a very strange feeling. "Can't there be a way for both to live?" he asked almost desperately.

Hunith shook her head. "I don't know." Hunith thought for a moment, a spark of hope igniting within her. "Maybe Olwen would know. You should ask her."

"Hunith," Arthur said quietly. "Olwen warned that we needed to be careful about telling of the future. She very specifically said that in trying to avoid a moment of pain, we may end up causing something worse."

"I miss Aderyn very much, but I don't believe for an instant that she would want to risk her daughter for her own life," Gwen added.

"But now she's missing, too." Merlin said, speaking of the daughter he did not yet know. "and it's my fault. If all this didn't happen to me than she wouldn't be missing right now."

"Don't forget," Gwaine reminded him, "Kessa may be missing from us, but she is with you. You're both missing. And you would never let anything happen to that girl." He grinned. "You're more protective of her than you are of Arthur. And that's saying something."

Merlin looked at him and spared him a smile. "I guess Arthur was just practice. Taking care of a child is probably way easier than taking care of a prat."

"You do not 'take care of' me," Arthur said, rather indignantly.

Merlin rolled his eyes. "Arthur, for the past seven years, I have been following you around, bringing you your meals, cleaning your room, washing your clothes, not to mention saving your life. If that is not taking care of you, I do not know what is."

"Shut up, Merlin." Arthur said. Merlin grinned.

"Are you going to be alright, Merlin?" Gwen asked.

Merlin sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. It wasn't as though he was unfamiliar with pushing through painful situations and suppressing negative emotions until he had more time to deal with them. "Yeah, I think so. I mean, it's all a bit overwhelming. And depressing. But I'll survive."

"Not all depressing," Gwaine said. "I mean, there have certainly been moments, sure. That's life. But there is a lot of good times coming your way, too. You have a daughter, for one. And magic is legal. Don't forget about that."

Merlin smiled. "Yeah, thanks, Gwaine. That is something to look forward to."

"Just got to stay optimistic, mate."

"Okay," Merlin said, "so I have a daughter. But if she is with the other me in the past Camelot, won't people here wonder where she is?"

"Not necessarily," Hunith said, "as long as we get this resolved quickly, people will just assume that she is in the nursery, in lessons, or with someone else. She is not at your side at every minute."

Merlin nodded and then thought of something else that was really rather worrying. He bit his lip. "Um, how long has magic been legal?" he asked glancing at Arthur.

"Why?" Arthur asked, "it's not like people are going to quiz you on your history or anything."

"No, that's not what I'm worried about." He scratched his cheek, still a bit nervous about talking of magic so openly in front of the king. "If the future me is in a past Camelot with a young child who doesn't know to be afraid of talking about magic…" he trailed off. "She may let something slip about my magic."

Hunith closed her eyes and sighed. Suddenly all the fears she had buried deep within her from long ago, when she was a single mother of a powerful magical child, bubbled to the surface. She had lived each day not knowing if it was the day someone would find out about her boy and put them both to death. She was so grateful that Merlin himself never had to live with that fear for his own child. Until now.

Gwaine made a face at his king. "I can't imagine that it would go over very well." The knight didn't actually have to imagine; he knew that it did not go over well when Arthur had discovered Merlin's magic. He doubted that adding a magical child to the mix would do much to improve the situation.

Arthur sighed and scrubbed his face with his hands. This entire predicament was causing him to relive many past mistakes. He did not appreciate it. While he wanted to blame Merlin for forcing him to once more come face to face with his faults, he was well aware that his mistakes were his own.

"No," Arthur said, "let's just hope that Merlin can prevent her from saying or doing anything that may be… misinterpreted."

"This is assuming, of course, that Merlin and Kessa are in the past and they truly did switch places. While the evidence may be pointing that way, we don't know for sure. They could have just wandered off. Merlin does have a tendency to do that from time to time," Gwaine said, smirking at the warlock.

"I do not 'wander off,'" Merlin said crossing his arms.

"Oh, Merlin," Hunith said, smiling, "you always have. Whenever something catches your eye or piques your curiosity, you never could stop yourself from investigating." She frowned sternly and shook her finger at him, although her eyes betrayed her amusement. "Even if you were told to stay put."

"It's true. I don't know how many times I've caught you wandering off somewhere with a half-baked excuse," Arthur said.

"That's usually to save you!"

"Which you accomplish by disappearing, sometimes days on end, without telling anyone where you are going."

"I'm sorry. Next time someone tries to kill you, I'll be sure to take the time to ask for your permission before saving your life."

Arthur sniffed, "see that you do."

"Okay," Gwaine said, raising his hand slightly as if asking permission to speak. "So are we now saying that Merlin and Kessa are still in this time but wandered off," he allowed a slight smirk at Merlin's huff of annoyance, "or are we assuming that they did end up in the past."

"Considering that they seemed to disappear without any tracks, I think it is safe to assume that they did switch places somehow with our current Merlin," Arthur said, after considering the question for a moment.

"Both of them?" Gwen asked.

Arthur nodded. "Probably, but we will continue to search, just in case."

A knock on the door interrupted their conversation.

"You're popular tonight," Gwaine observed.

Arthur sighed and tuned to Merlin, "Remember, you need to pretend to be your older self." Arthur grimaced as he looked Merlin up and down, assessing his ability to act like a confident court sorcerer instead of an idiot servant. He was not reassured by what he saw. "Just, try not to say anything." The king sat straighter in his chair and turned toward the door, "Enter."

A young man in chainmail and Camelot red entered and bowed before the king. He looked to be in his early 20's. His skin was a light brown and he had curly, dark hair, cut just long enough to cover his ears. He looked to be around the same height and build as Arthur.

Both Gwen and Arthur rose, smiling, as he entered. Gwen embraced him, and then stood back to give him a once over, to assess for any injuries.

"Constantine!" Arthur exclaimed, with a big smile. "you're back! And in time for the tournament, too. I was afraid you would miss it."

"Not for the world, Father," The young man said with a smile.

"Was your quest successful?" Arthur asked the prince.

"Arthur," Gwen scolded, "he just returned. Perhaps we should ensure that our son is fed, rested, and uninjured after his dangerous quest, before asking if he managed to find your trinket."

"I'm fine, Mother," The young man said, trying to hold back a laugh. "Just happy to be home."

"Technically it's Merlin's trinket. I don't know what I'd do with the thing," Arthur muttered.

"Trinket?" Merlin asked, partly confused about what they were talking about, and partly intrigued at the opportunity to meet Arthur and Gwen's son.

Arthur shot a look at Merlin, reminding him that he was supposed to be quiet. Unfortunately, the damage was done.

The prince looked at Merlin. He blinked. Then an eyebrow was raised. "Do I even want to know?" the prince asked.

Arthur sighed and rolled his eyes. "Probably not."

The prince shrugged and then reached for a pouch. "I know I should officially give this to you in some sort of ceremony and in public, but I thought you might be interested in seeing the fruits of my quest before then."

"I'm just happy you are back safely," Gwen said. "I still think it is foolish to have the crown prince go off by himself. I worried every minute of every day you were gone."

"Gwen," Arthur said, exasperated with the familiar argument, "it has been a tradition for generations. This is a quest meant to show the people that Constantine will make a strong leader and is worthy of the throne of Camelot."

Gwen placed her hands on her hips and faced her husband. "How does putting yourself in needless danger prove you are fit to rule?"

"Wait a minute," Merlin said, interrupting the argument, "this is the quest that the prince goes on alone, and unaided?"

The king glared at his former manservant. "Yes."

"The one that Gwaine and I didn't go on with you?" Merlin asked.

"Yes, Merlin," Arthur said, through gritted teeth. "That quest."

Merlin nodded and turned to the prince.

"Did you have to fight wyverns on your quest, too?"

"Merlin!" Arthur yelled, reaching for an empty goblet on the table and chucking it at the warlock's head.

Merlin skillfully dodged it and continued, "not that I'd know what Arthur faced on his quest, of course, considering that I wasn't actually there."

Merlin was not quite fast enough to dodge the second goblet. Which was unfortunate because this one wasn't quite empty and Merlin ended up with a face full of wine.

Gwaine could not prevent his laughter as Merlin wiped the drink from his face. He grinned at the knight before turning back to the prince.

"So what was your quest?"

The prince frowned in confusion. "What do you mean? You were there when I chose it. You even mentioned, repeatedly I might add, that you wanted to come with me." He glanced towards his father, looking for an explanation.

Arthur sighed and shot another glare at the warlock. "Merlin cast a spell that did not go as planned. It made him an even bigger idiot than usual."

"I see," Constantine said slowly. He clearly didn't. But he was used to strange things happening around the king's magical advisor. Growing up with Merlin for an uncle, the prince didn't think that anything would surprise him anymore. He remembered a time when he was about 14 or so when Merlin tried to cast a spell to turn himself into a raven. The court sorcerer claimed he was doing it because it would be useful for traveling over great distances, carrying messages, and perhaps even a bit of spy work. Constantine suspected that the wizard just wanted to see what it would be like to fly. As it turned out, Merlin got stuck as a bird for a full 24 hours before Olwen and Aderyn were able to help him get back to normal. But even after he managed to get his body back to being human, his hair remained interspersed with black feathers for a few months until he molted. So Constantine was entirely unsurprised at this current turn of events. He shrugged and pulled a small golden box out of the pouch.

The box was small enough to fit easily inside the palm of his hand. It was hexagonal in shape and had no discernable lid. The top of the box was covered in a symbol that looked like it was meant to represent the sun. Ancient runes were inscribed on the sides. As Merlin looked at it, he could sense the magic within.

"My quest was to find a box known as the Drage af Solen*. It is said to hold the key to unraveling the secrets of the dragons. I found it being guarded by a great water serpent in a large lake nestled in the northern highlands."

Merlin walked over to the prince, keeping his eye on the box. The rest of the room seemed to fade away as he looked at it. The secrets of the dragons. The phrase kept repeating itself in his mind. He held out his hand, "May I see it?"

The prince set it in Merlin's open hand. Merlin held it up and examined each rune. They looked both familiar and unfamiliar at the same time. He felt like he ought to know what the runes meant but couldn't quite place it. Like the feeling you get when a word is on the tip of your tongue.

"Merlin," Arthur said softly, he put his hand on the warlock's shoulder to get his attention. Merlin looked up from the box, slightly glassy eyed. "Perhaps this is not the best time," the king gently reminded him.

"But this box,"

"Is not going anywhere," the king interrupted. "You can look at it _later_ ," he said, stressing the last word.

Merlin met his eyes, clearly reluctant to let it go. "It could tell me so much," he said.

"And it will, _eventually_. But we have other things to concern ourselves with for the moment."

Merlin sighed and slowly handed it back to Constantine, who put it back in the pouch. Merlin's eyes did not leave the pouch, as though he could will the item to reveal its secrets through the leather of the bag.

Arthur turned to his son and set his hands on his shoulders. "We will gather the council tomorrow morning so you can present this artifact properly. In the meantime, get some food and rest. You have earned it."

Constantine inclined his head, "Thank you, Father," he said. He got one last hug from Gwen, and then turned and left for his chambers.

Once he was gone, Merlin turned to Arthur. "I don't want to wait twenty-five years to see what that box has to say about the dragons."

"Well, you're going to have to." Merlin opened his mouth to protest but Arthur did not let him interrupt. "I mean it, Merlin. We don't know exactly what that box contains. And we have enough to worry about right now. I don't want you going behind my back, sneaking a look at it, and then accidentally releasing something dangerous that you are not yet equipped to handle."

Merlin scowled. "I can handle more than you think."

"Oh? Remember the goblin? Do you really want a repeat incident of that?"

Merlin scoffed and then smirked. "I thought you said that we were never to speak of that again."

The king glared. "I'm making a point. None of that would have happened if you hadn't been messing with things you should have left alone."

"It was an accident!"

"Then let's make sure we don't repeat the experience."

Merlin rolled his eyes. "Arthur, I'm pretty sure that the secrets of the dragons have nothing to do with goblins."

Arthur sighed in frustration. "Merlin, I would much rather you be working on finding a way to get home as soon as possible. Not investigating some old artefact."

Merlin was about to argue again when Gwen stopped him. "The longer you are here, the more likely the chance that something will happen to change the future. Life as we know it depends on you getting home quickly and keeping things the way they are supposed to be." She placed a hand on his arm. "Please."

Merlin looked her in the eye and conceded that she might have a point. Was he willing to risk his friends, his future, the freedom of magic, and all that he had been working for, just to sate his own curiosity? No. He never could. He gave a reluctant nod. "You're right, Gwen." She smiled and squeezed his arm.

They all returned to the table. They spent several more hours telling Merlin about people he needed to recognize, and current events that might come up that he would be expected to comment on. He learned that Arthur and Gwen were blessed with six children, with Constantine as the oldest at 22. He was followed by a sister, Igraine, named after Arthur's mother. She was 20 years old and the king was currently trying to find her an appropriate suitor. She was apparently not cooperating with his efforts. (Merlin didn't really find that very surprising, considering her parent's history.) Then there were two more boys, separated by only a year. Thom, named after Gwen's father was 17, followed closely by his 16-year-old brother, Amhar. Bringing up the rear was Loholt and Lisanor, 13-year-old fraternal twins.

While all the children loved Merlin as an uncle and were vaguely interested in his magic, the twins had always been beyond fascinated. From a very young age, they would constantly want to be by Merlin's side in the hopes that they would glimpse some magic. Merlin, of course, was always willing to show off to them. He loved all the Pendragon children, but there was no denying that he had a special relationship with the twins.

After Arthur and Gwen told a little bit about their children, Gwaine took over and told Merlin about his wife and two sons.

"You're married? You?" Merlin interrupted when Gwaine started talking about his family.

"Believe me, it took us all by surprise," Arthur said.

Gwaine's oldest son, Gaheris was nineteen and recently knighted while his younger son, Gareth, was 16 and still in training as a squire. Merlin wasn't sure if he was more surprised that Gwaine actually settled down with one woman, or that the woman, Lorie, was half fae. Both seemed rather unbelievable. Despite Merlin's prodding, Gwaine refused to tell the story of how he met a half fae.

"Don't want to give away too many spoilers," Gwaine had said with a wink.

"Merlin should also know about Galahad," Hunith pointed out, sensing a need to change the subject.

"Galahad," Merlin said, frowning. "That name sounds familiar."

"Yes," Arthur said, "he was the young knight with Sir Leon earlier."

"Okay," Merlin said, sighing, "what about him." Merlin was getting exhausted and definitely suffering from information overload. Twenty-five years of personal history was a lot to take in and he knew that they were barely scratching the surface. Merlin would be lucky to survive this experience without making a complete fool of himself. He briefly contemplated the thought of just locking himself in a storage closet somewhere until this mess was fixed. Then he wouldn't have to worry about remembering all those names.

"Galahad is your ward," Gwen said.

"My what?" Merlin asked. He didn't think anything else would surprise him. Apparently he was wrong.

"Well, he's an adult now, and a knight, so I don't know if he is technically your ward anymore. Actually at this point, he's probably older than you right now, the current you anyway," Gwen realized she was babbling and stopped herself. She could tell she was getting tired. These days, she didn't usually babble unless she was very tired, or had a bit too much to drink. She continued to explain to Merlin about Galahad. "You took him in when he was seven. He is Lancelot's nephew. When Galahad was a boy, his parents had been killed. He somehow made his way to Camelot, looking for Lancelot. He hadn't heard about…" she trailed off. "You took him in," she finished. "He became like a son to you."

Merlin stared at her, then his mother, who nodded. He looked towards the door where the two knights had been a few hours earlier.

"I have a daughter, and a ward?"

"Yes," Hunith said, unable to prevent a proud smile from forming.

"Huh," Merlin said, completely unable to articulate anything else. He was very much at a loss for words. Not only did he have a ward, but it was someone related to Lancelot. He wasn't sure how he felt about that. On one hand, he felt a familiar wave of guilt at the thought of Lancelot's death. Merlin still couldn't help wondering if there was something he could have done to prevent it. And now to find out that Lancelot had family somewhere that Merlin never knew about. That made the guilt worse. But on the other hand, he felt a bit of satisfaction with the knowledge that he would take care of Lancelot's nephew. It felt like a good way to honor his friend. He thought that Lancelot would be pleased with the arrangement.

Merlin sighed and scrubbed his face with his hands. "I don't know if I can take much more tonight," he admitted.

They all nodded. "It is quite a lot," Hunith said, sympathetically.

"And it is getting late," Gwen added. "Hunith, would you like to show Merlin to his room?"

Merlin winced, "I don't suppose I can just sleep in my old room?"

Arthur snorted. "The current physician's apprentice might not like being kicked out of his bed."

Merlin sighed again. "Right, of course."

"Don't worry, Merlin," Hunith said. "It will all feel better in the morning, once you've had some sleep. It is a lot to take in, but if anyone can survive through this, I know it is you."

Merlin gave his mother a grateful smile before leaving the room with her.

After the door closed, Arthur sighed and looked at Gwen and Gwaine. "Do you think we are doing the right thing, telling him all this?"

"I don't really think we have much of a choice," Gwaine said seriously.

"It will be fine," Gwen reassured them, "Merlin can handle it. He is stronger than any of us ever gave him credit for."

"He hasn't ever had much of a choice," Gwaine replied. He frowned and leaned back in his chair. "I know what Olwen said about revealing too much. But if we can somehow prevent some of what is to come…"

Arthur shook his head. "I wish we could. But what of the risk? There is so much that I regret. At least you were always there for him. I have to live with the fact that my rejection of him, even for a short time, did so much damage."

Gwen placed a hand on Arthur's arm. "We know that he will survive, and will be all the stronger for it."

"Yes. But I just wish he didn't have to," Gwaine said.

"So do I, my friend, so do I," the sorrow was audible in Arthur's voice.

 **Author's Note:**

*A completely made up doohickey for this story. It is meant to translate to 'Dragon of the sun' in Danish. That is, assuming Google translate worked properly. I decided to use Danish to substitute for old Norse, since Google translate doesn't have Norse as an option.

As a side note, in this chapter, there is a lot of references to backstories and other random events that happened in the 25 year gap between the two times. I have a whole history written out in a separate document that I have been references as I've been writing. (Although there are some things that popped up without me planning for it. Like the bird thing.) I plan to eventually do some one-shots or shorter stories with some of these references. Probably a full length prequel. It will depend on how it all goes. I'm not quite halfway through this story so I don't want to plan a bunch of other things yet. Especially since the semester has started up again so I have less time to devote to fun writing.

Another side note, this wasn't my favorite chapter and I had a hard time with it. It was mostly just filler as a way to give a bit of background information and introduce some new names of people that will make an appearance or be referenced later.

Finally, I would like to thank everyone who has reviewed this story so far. I really enjoy reading what you all have to say and appreciate the encouragement.


	10. Chapter 10: Investigations

**Chapter 10: Investigations**

 _The Past:_

"I am getting too old for this nonsense," Gaius grumbled to Merlin as they rode with Gwain and Percival through the forest.

"You're as young as you feel," Merlin said with a grin.

Gaius snorted. "At the moment, I feel about a hundred. Haven't they figured out a way to make horses more comfortable?"

"Sorry, no," Merlin said, laughing.

"Maybe you can do something about that," Gwaine said. "Make a magic saddle or something. You know, for old men such as yourselves."

Percival snorted as both Merlin and Gaius raised identical eyebrows at the knight.

"I am not old, Gwaine," Merlin said in mock offense. "I am experienced and sophisticated."

"Sophisticated? You? You may be many things, Merlin, but I don't know that sophisticated is one of them." Gwaine said. "You are far too interesting to ever be accused of sophistication."

"Thanks?" Merlin said, not quite sure if that was a complement or an insult.

"So, magic bubbles?" Percival asked, raising an eyebrow. He had been burning to ask ever since they left the physicians quarters, but didn't want to be overheard by anyone. Now that they were in the woods, and far from prying ears, he felt more comfortable getting the story.

Merlin sighed. "It is one of her favorite things to do to entertain herself. She makes these bubbles and then forms them into different patterns and shapes. For her, magic is like another toy."

"Isn't that a bit dangerous for her?" Percival asked.

"No." Merlin said. "For one thing, she doesn't know any destructive spells. And for another, she knows what type of magic is for play and what is for more practical use. She has seen magic that creates fire to light the fireplace or cook dinner. Fire has never been used as entertainment around her so she does not associate it as something to play with. And I have been very careful to tell her what she is and is not allowed to do. Just as most people teach children not to play with knives, she has been taught that only some magic is for play."

"That is good," Percival said slowly, "but I was referring to the fact that magic is illegal. Are you not worried about her safety around other people?"

Merlin frowned in confusion before remembering that the two knights were not in the room when he was explaining the future to Arthur and Gwen. They didn't hear him say that some magic was legal in the future. In that case, they also didn't hear that he had learned some healing spells from the druids. And yet, didn't Gwaine casually mention Merlin making a magic saddle? He winced. The fact that he objected to being called old and not to the thought of making a magic saddle was no doubt noticed by the knight. As well as the fact that he casually talked about teaching his daughter appropriate magic to play with.

"Certain magic is legal in the future, so long as it is not used to harm another person or property."

"And I suppose if your daughter knows magic, you know magic, too. In the future, of course." Gwaine said.

Merlin looked at him sharply. Did Gwaine suspect of his magic even now? He remembered when his magic had come out the first time, Gwaine had not seemed surprised. But Merlin never actually got around to asking how long Gwaine had suspected. For some reason, it had never come up.

"Of course," Merlin said, meeting his eye. "In the future." He paused and looked at Percival who was also looking at him curiously.

"I can't imagine the princess being too happy with you if he found out you learned any spells before he made them legal," Gwaine continued. "He would probably overreact a bit."

"He probably would," Merlin said with a grimace.

"Which is why you waited to learn spells until after it was legalized."

"I learned many spells after it was legalized. Kessa's mother was a druid and both she and her sister, along with several other druids taught me a lot."

Gwaine smirked at Merlin, catching onto the warlocks careful wording.

"Did you tell this to Arthur?" Percival asked.

Merlin nodded. "I did. He wasn't happy when he saw what Kessa was doing. I needed to explain."

"Then I see no more reason to talk about it." Percival replied smiling at Merlin. He then turned away and pointed off the trail. "It's just through those trees. Not far now." Percival dismounted and tied his horse to a nearby tree before disappearing in the undergrowth. Gwaine followed suit.

Merlin and Gaius dismounted a bit more slowly. Merlin caught the glance of Gaius who looked slightly worried and pale as he stared after the knights. He was no doubt concerned about what the knights would do if they truly did suspect the current Merlin had magic. Merlin shot him a reassuring smile. They did not have to worry about either Gwaine or Percival.

"Merlin, you are going to be the death of me," Gaius muttered. "I think I have aged twenty years since I met you due to worry alone."

"All part of being a parent, Gaius," Merlin replied.

Gaius glanced at Merlin in surprise but then smiled. "Yes. I suppose it is." The two shared another smile before following the knights through the trees.

Merlin frowned as he followed Percival through the trees. He could sense a wrongness in the air, more than the usual for this time period. The ambient magic was damaged in this time period but this sense of wrongness extended beyond that.

Ahead of him, Merlin saw Gwaine and Percival standing shoulder to shoulder. Both were tense and fingering their weapons, staring into the clearing. As he came alongside them, he realized why.

Saying that the yew tree had scorch marks was a bit of an understatement. Half of the trunk was completely black; the bark had been burned away, and the wood underneath was charred so much that it looked more like charcoal than a living tree. Near the edges of scorch mark, the bark was peeling and sap oozed from the wounds. The needles on the branches were yellowing and some were already brown. From where he was standing, Merlin could feel the pain of the tree. The ancient yew was slowly dying. But that was not the worst. Whatever spell that was killing tree seemed to be extending to the rest of the glade. The vegetation around the tree was also brown and dying. The bodies of a few birds lay scattered around the area. Between the four men and the yew was the prone body of a doe. It lay still and the men were sure that it was as dead as the grass it lay on. The area of death formed a perfect circle around the tree, nearly encompassing the entire opening. Even where the stream passed through the sickness of the area, it turned brown and murky. The glade was silent. No sounds of birds or insects could be heard. None of the men spoke or moved while they took in the damage.

"Is this what the clearing looked like when you came by earlier?" Merlin asked Percival in a low voice.

Percival shook his head. "No. There was some dead grass at the base of the tree, but it wasn't to this extent."

"It looks like the whole area has been poisoned," Gwaine said.

"That's because it has," Gaius responded. "Merlin, whatever spell was used to attack your younger self was very dark indeed."

"And strong," Merlin murmured, crouching down to get a better look at the grass, but careful not to touch it. He closed his eyes and probed with his magic to investigate the damage. "It's spreading. And it will continue to do so unless we can stop it."

"How can we do that?" Percival asked.

Merlin glanced up from where he was crouching, one side of his mouth quirking up in a half smile. "Well, by 'we,' I actually mean me." He stood up and surveyed the glade. "Stay here," he commanded without looking towards them. "and don't touch any of the dead vegetation. If it starts to spread, back away from it."

Gwaine and Percival glance at each other, both were slightly unnerved by Merlin's tone and stance. He was acting more like a general who was used to giving orders than a servant who was used to taking them.

Gwaine didn't quite know what to do with this change from the Merlin he was familiar with, so he chose to ignore it for now. He could deal with it later when the crisis was averted. "What are you going to do?" he asked.

"I'm going to fix it."

"Merlin," Gaius said. At his worried tone, Merlin looked back at his former guardian. "Be careful," Gaius said.

"Don't worry. I actually _do_ know what I am doing." With one last reassuring smile, Merlin strode into the clearing.

As soon as he stepped forward into the circle of dead grass, he felt as though he had been plunged into a toxic fog, although there was no visible barrier or sign of magic other than the decay around him. He could feel the dark magic trying to infect him; to seep into every pore and orifice. His eyes flashed gold and the darkness retreated from him; but it didn't go far. He could feel it coming towards him again. He would have to act quickly. He approached the downed doe. He was relieved to see it was still living, but only just. It gasped, struggling to breath. He hesitated near it. He hated seeing any living thing in such pain, but if he took the time and energy to heal it now, it would only become infected again a moment later. He would have to deal with the cause first.

Merlin approached the tree and placed the palm of his hand at the center of the wound. It took all his willpower not to recoil from the darkness emanating from it. He steeled himself and pushed his into the tree. He could feel the clash of his pure magic with the corrupted magic. He felt the dark magic surge against his own and nearly overtake it. He placed his other palm against the tree and pushed with everything he had; channeling all he could through his hands into the yew. The dark magic tried to push back but it was no match for Merlin's magic. With a flash of light, his magic overcame the darkness and the corruption vanished, starting with the tree and extending outwards through the whole glade. But Merlin's job wasn't over yet. The evil was gone, but the destruction it caused was still there. Now he needed to heal the glade.

Merlin pulled back the offensive spell that had destroyed the evil and reached down into his core to draw out healing magic. Healing was always far more difficult than offensive magic. All you needed for an attack was a blast of raw energy. Healing was more intricate. With healing, you couldn't just blast away and hope for the best. It required intense concentration to refine a greater amount of power. And for the damage he now had to heal, he would need as much of the refined power as possible.

He coaxed his magic forward, weaving it into a complex tapestry that he could drape over the entire clearing. He opened his eyes and could see a shimmering golden blanket forming in the air above him. It started above his head and was growing outward as he channeled more magic into it. Once it was large enough to cover the entire glade he brought his hands down and the blanket of magic settled over every living thing in the area, renewing all it touched. The water in the stream cleared of murkiness; the birds, the doe, and the squirrels that lay sick and dying got up off the ground, shook themselves and went about their business as if nothing had happened. The brown vegetation straightened and grew green again, flowers blooming until the glade was a rainbow of color. And the gaping wound in the yew knit itself back together. New, smooth bark grew and the black scorch mark faded away as though it was never there. The branches no longer drooped and the needles became a vibrant green.

With the glade healed, Merlin let his hands drop and slumped against the tree, closing his eyes. All he wanted to do now was curl up and sleep for a month. It had been a while since he used that much energy all at once. He was exhausted. But he couldn't rest for long; they still had things that needed to be done. Just as he was contemplating whether he should open his heavy eyelids and try to figure out where that destructive spell had originated from, he felt a gentle rush of energy coming from the tree. He had healed it, and in return, it was replenishing some of what he lost. He sighed in contentment. It felt like a refreshing drink of cool water after a day of hard labor.

He put his hand against the magical tree in thanks. As he did, he felt a presence brush against his mind. While it did not speak in any language, he somehow was able to understand it. The tree was thanking him for combating the evil curse and healing its home.

He smiled and sent back his own message of thanks. "But what caused it?" he muttered to the tree.

In response the tree sent images into his mind. He saw all the events that transpired from the tree's perspective. He felt the yew's happiness as a young Emrys came into its glade. Merlin felt the communication that transpired between the yew and the younger version of himself. He then felt the trees worry as they both came under attack. He saw in his mind how the tree tried to save him; how the younger Merlin's magic merged with the yew's own protection spell. But when their combined magic was mixed with the dark magic that was attacking, it caused an explosion, allowing the curse to infect the glade and sending Merlin hurtling towards the origin of that dark magic, twenty-five years into the future. But, as with all magic, a balance was required. So the future Merlin was exchanged for the past.

' _Do you know how we can switch back?'_ he projected to the yew.

Merlin could feel the regret from the ancient tree as it informed him it did not. Switching was an accident in the first place, and something so powerful as time travel was usually beyond the abilities of the yew.

' _It's not your fault,'_ Merlin reassured the yew. _'Thank you for what you have done. If it was not for you I would be dead.'_

Merlin felt the tree reciprocate gratefulness back towards him. It was grateful that Merlin not only saved the yew itself but the other beings in its glade.

"Merlin," the warlock heard Gaius whisper, interrupting the silent conversation.

Merlin opened his eyes and turned to face his companions. They were still standing where he left them at the edge of the glade. He winced as he saw their expressions. All three of them were staring at him, wide eyed and awed. He could only imagine how all of that must have looked to them. In all the years since his magic was made known, he still hated being looked at like he was some all-powerful being; like he wasn't quite human. It was even worse when it came from his friends. It happened less and less as the years went by and they got used to his magic, but every once and a while he did something that would remind them of his power. And they would get that look. It was very uncomfortable.

"It's safe now," Merlin said, trying to ignore their looks.

None of them moved. Merlin winced. Now that the knights saw what he could truly do, would they change their minds about how they felt about him? Would they decide he was dangerous after all? If he got back to his own time soon, it wouldn't matter all that much. But how would they view his younger self?

Merlin sighed and looked away, running his fingers through his hair.

He looked up as he heard someone approaching. Gaius stood before him. "Oh, my boy," Gaius said, and pulled him into a hug, which Merlin gratefully returned. Merlin missed this.

After a few seconds, Gaius pulled back. "Are you alright?" he asked.

"Yes. A bit tired, but the tree's magic refreshed me a bit."

Gaius nodded and glanced towards the tree. He looked at the spot where the burn had been. He hesitantly reached over and brushed his fingers against it. He gasped as he felt the life of the tree pulsing beneath his fingers. He stared at Merlin in astonishment. "The tree refreshed you?"

"Yes, it was grateful that I healed it."

"I have heard stories of these ancient trees, but I never thought I would actually encounter one." Gaius put his hand against the bark again and smiled when he felt its presence. "Incredible," he whispered.

"I'm sorry," Gwaine said from behind them. Gaius and Merlin both jumped. Neither had heard the two knights come up beside them. "But did you just say that the _tree_ was grateful?"

Merlin glanced at him and smirked. "Trees have feelings, too, Gwaine," Merlin said, then added in afterthought, "well, magic trees do, anyway."

"Trees can be magic?" Percival asked, looking thoughtfully at the yew.

"Yes," Gaius said, "But most of them just have some magic properties that are useful for spells or potions. It is extremely rare to find a sentient one. Only the most ancient can act on their own. I thought that they were all lost years ago." Gaius gave a smile towards the yew. "I am grateful to see that I was wrong."

"After it was healed, it thanked me for helping it and then showed me what happened. I know how I ended up in this time."

There was another pause. The Gwaine raised an eyebrow, "You talk to trees?"

Merlin shrugged. "It's not that different from talking to you. After all, you both have wooden heads."

Percival grinned and Gwaine pretended to be offended before laughing.

"Did the tree tell you what happened to your younger self?" Percival asked.

"Yes. Apparently we switched placed. Magic has a balance that must be maintained and in order for something to be sent into the future, something else must be sent into the past."

"That explains how you switched with our Merlin," Gaius said, "but who, or what, switched with your daughter?"

Merlin thought for a moment. He searched through the memories that the yew sent him. "I think," he said slowly as he considered the possibility, "that it was to balance the original spell that attacked this glade. That spell was sent from the future. Someone from the future tried to kill me in the past. But whoever sent it, did not do anything to balance the timeline. I was holding Kessa as we switched. That fact, combined with the unbalance, is probably what caused us both to end up here."

"In that case, isn't it all balanced now? How will we send both of you back if you will only switch with one person?"

Merlin winced. "I don't know. But," he closed his eyes and sent his awareness into the magic of the world. It was still churning from the damage due to the Great Purge. Could some of the damage also be due to an interrupted timeline? He didn't know. This was not something he ever had to deal with before. He would have to do more research. "Neither of us belong here," Merlin said. "I think to be truly balanced, we need to be in our own times. In this case, the magic will want Kessa to be back in the future. But I don't know for sure. I will have to do a bit of research and think on it more."

"Then if there is nothing more to be learned here, we should head back to Camelot. We need to tell Arthur what we know and start researching how to get you both back," Gaius said.

 **Author's note** : Well another chapter done. So sorry for the delay. School is really taking off. I had a request from a reader to see some really powerful magic from future Merlin so I hoped that this sufficed.

Once again, thank you to all the followers and reviewers of this story. I hope that it is meeting your expectations. For those of you who have posed questions: stick around! Hopefully they will be answered by the conclusion.


	11. Chapter 11: Something Wicked

Chapter 11: Something Wicked

 _The future_

The cloaked woman ducked back into the shadows as a patrol passed. She held her breath, not sure if they saw her. She was convinced her heart was beating loud enough to be heard all the way back at the citadel; the guards were bound to hear her. But they passed without a single glance in her direction. She waited a moment more and then relaxed slightly. She was still undiscovered. She needed to get out of town quickly. They were waiting for her report.

Once the patrol was out of sight, she rushed in the opposite direction and into a storage area built in the side of the wall. She quickly went into a dark corner and pushed a barrel out of the way. There, on the floor was a trap door. It was just where they told her it would be. Smugglers and thieves often used it to import and export their wares. Now it would be used to smuggle information.

She grabbed the handle and yanked it open. She was both surprised and relieved to hear it made no sound. Apparently, the thieves' guild kept it well oiled. She supposed it was to their benefit to stay silent in their dealings. She climbed down the ladder, closing the trapdoor behind her. She stood in the pitch black and shuddered. She closed her eyes and hugged herself. _I can do this_ , she thought to herself. _Nothing down here can hurt me. It is just darkness. Darkness can't hurt me,_ she reminded herself. _No_ , another part of her mind responded, _but the things that live in it can_. She quickly told that other voice to shut up.

They had told her it would be 425 steps until she reached the end of the tunnel. She took one more breath and began walking slowly, counting her steps.

She kept her hands in front of her as she crept down the dark, damp tunnel. The air was dank and musty. She felt like she couldn't breathe properly. Her eyes were beginning to ache from constantly straining in a search for light that wasn't there. She couldn't believe how tiny this tunnel was. The top of her head brushed the ceiling and she could reach out and touch both sides without fully straightening her arms. Was it just her, or was the tunnel getting smaller? How secure was it? Would it collapse and leave her trapped in the darkness? No. She could not think like that. She continued to count her steps. If she just concentrated on the numbers, she would get through without any issues. 111, 112, 113… Was she truly only a quarter of the way through? How long had she been down here? She couldn't tell. It felt like hours already. She wasn't sure if she would ever reach the end.

After what seemed like an eternity, she finally felt the ladder. With a strangled gasp that was part sob, she clutched it and climbed as quickly as she dared in the dark. She needed out! Now!

She flung open the hatch and scampered out of the hole. She collapsed on the ground next to the opening and gasped at the clean air. She made a promise then and there, she was never going back in that tunnel.

She finally pulled herself up and glanced at her surroundings. She was in a barn to the North East of Camelot. The woods were not far beyond the barn. She closed the trapdoor and exited the barn, careful to keep a look out for anyone that might spot her.

She entered the woods and followed the path that they told her to take. It ended at a cave system. She sighed at the thought of entering another small, dark space. "I'm almost done," she told herself. "Just this one last thing, then I'll be free."

She hesitated at the entrance and then took one small step in. "Hello?" she called out. Her voice wavered. She took another faltering step in the cave. She really did not want to go in there. She just wanted to tell them what she knew and leave. She could do that at the entrance just as well as further in. "I'm here. I have the information you wanted."

She gasped as a blade suddenly materialized at her throat.

"You're late." A voice behind her said.

"I'm sorry," she said. She swallowed and could feel the sharp edge against her throat. "Please."

"Were you followed?" the voice asked.

"No," she whispered. The blade disappeared as quickly as it had come and she felt hands grip her arms tightly. She was forced deeper into the caves.

"Please," she said, "I don't want to go in there."

"Too bad. We can't talk here." The man replied.

The man marched her through extensive, mazelike tunnels. Even if they let her go now, she knew she would never find her way back out.

The tunnels finally ended at a door. The man gave a swift knock and then waited.

"Enter," a raspy voice called from within.

The door creaked open and the man shoved her forward. She fell to her knees on a black and orange striped, animal skin rug in the center of the room. She had never seen a beast that was patterned like that before. To the left of the door was a large table. A large map of Albion was spread out on half of the table. The other half contained books, papers, and some vials filled with unknown liquids. Behind the table was a large fireplace built into the cave wall. She briefly wondered how a fireplace ended up so deep within the cave system. (Where did the smoke go?) The flames in the fireplace was the only light in the room. The flickering fire cast shadows that danced on the walls in an eerie fashion. The crackling sound of the fire mingled with the sound of ragged breathing coming from a bed directly across from the door.

If she had not been able to hear his labored breathing, she would have assumed the man in the bed was a corpse. His skin was very pale which contrasted with his dark, matted hair. His lips seemed to have a blue tint to them and his eyes were sunken in, causing deep smudges around them. His head slowly turned towards her.

She met the gaze of the bedridden man and shuddered at the cruelty in his eyes. They were such a pale, icy blue, she was unsure that they were even the eyes of a human. She quickly looked down, not wanting to meet his gaze for longer than necessary.

He sneered at her, unimpressed. "you come from the castle?" he asked. Though his voice was soft, it was hard, like steel. She did not want to cross this man.

"Yes, milord," she replied, looking at the floor. Her own voice shook.

"Well," he asked, impatient. "What news? What of Emrys?" He spat out the name as if it was something vile.

"Missing, milord," she said. "The king sent search parties. From what I hear, there is no sign of Emrys or his daughter. I overheard some knights speaking. It seems that he vanished without a trace."

"It worked," the man said, he leaned back in the bed and closed his eyes in relief. His hand went to an amulet around his neck and his lips twisted in a smile. All these years, and his revenge was nearly complete. It took all his strength, and most likely his soul, but it was well worth it. Emrys was gone. Soon, Arthur would follow. Once he was dead, the rest of the Pendragon line would be easy to exterminate. And then Mordred could finally rest.

To the young woman, the smile was worse than the sneer. It drew his skin over his cheekbones. Combined with the shadows from the fireplace, he looked skeletal and demonic, like a creature of a nightmare. The kind that came at night and devoured the blood of the innocent. She wanted nothing more than to flee. But she had one last task. Her whole reason for coming here. They had her brother captive and she would do anything to ensure his safety.

"My lord," she said, her voice barely a whisper. "Please, I did as you asked. I kept watch over the king, his knights and his sorcerer. I told you their plans. I kept your men aware of their movements these past months. Please. Keep your deal. Let me take my brother and leave this place. Let us escape somewhere far away. You will never see either of us again, I promise. Please."

His eyes opened again and he slowly turned his head to regard her. "We did have a deal." His eyes flicked to the guard behind her. "Take her to join her brother. Then send Prince Oswald to me."

The girl was jerked to her feet. The guard shoved her out the door and against the far wall. Her head struck the wall and her vision swam. She looked at him in a daze. She saw him lift his hand towards her and it was suddenly very clear that neither she, nor her brother, would be leaving here alive.

"No! Please, no!" she begged.

He paid no attention to her plea. He said an incantation and the last thing she saw was a ball of flame racing towards her. She didn't even have time to scream before she was completely engulfed.

When the flame dissipated, there was nothing left.

Without another glance, the man left to search for the foreign prince allied with Mordred.

As Mordred waited for the prince to arrive, he contemplated his journey thus far. The years of plotting and searching for a way to defeat Emrys was nearly at an end. After the fall of Morgana, Mordred had vowed to find a way to destroy Emrys, Arthur, and the entire Pendragon line. But it took a long time for Mordred to heal from that battle and by the time he had sufficiently recovered, so had Emrys. Emrys' power had far surpassed his own. Mordred knew that it was now impossible to defeat the warlock using the magic of Albion. But he had heard stories of magic in distant lands. Magic that was so different from Albion that it might catch Emrys off guard. Foreign magic might be capable of defeating the warlock.

So Mordred left Albion and traveled the world. He searched for the powerful and ancient magics of other cultures, to the east and to the south. After years of searching and learning, he heard of a spell that, if done correctly, had the power to bind and control foreign gods. Mordred could not defeat Emrys on his own, but if he could control the power of a god, Emrys would surely fall.

It was a complicated spell with great risk attached. It required the holiest artifact from the deity, many rare ingredients, and a great amount of power and concentration. If anything was done incorrectly, the caster would be destroyed, both body and soul, by the angry god.

Mordred spent years determining which gods would suit his purpose. More years were spent searching for the artifacts and even more years preparing for the spell. He only had one chance at this. He needed to get it right.

And is seemed as though he did. The spell worked. It took all his strength and left him incredibly weak. He knew he may not ever recover, but it was worth it. Emrys was dead. Arthur would follow. Mordred couldn't have been more pleased.

The former druid's musings were interrupted as the door opened and Prince Oswald entered. The foreign prince walked over to the table and leaned against it. He crossed his arms and gazed at Mordred.

"I'm told your spell worked," he said.

"Of course it did," Mordred snapped. "My spells always work."

"Don't get cocky. You look half-dead. It's a miracle you were not killed by such a spell."

"So long as I control the Amulet of Morta and the Staff of Aeternitas, I cannot die. Nor can I be defeated. When I captured the artifacts of the goddesses, their power came under my control. The powers of death and of eternity. Even Emrys cannot fight against that."

"Perhaps. I still do not think it is wise to attempt to control a goddess. Let alone two."

"They are not _my_ goddesses. And we are no longer in their lands. They are weaker here. They must bow to the wishes of this land's deities. And my goddess looks upon my quest with favor."

"If you say so. I'm just glad it's not me mucking about with goddesses. I wouldn't want one of those angry with me, no matter what land I happen to be in. The second you lose control over those things," he pointed to the amulet Mordred held, "the goddesses will be free. And something tells me they won't be happy with you using them like this."

"It is a risk, but one I am willing to take. It is the only way to eliminate Emrys. He was allowed to grow too powerful. But not any longer. Eventually even our memories of him will fade. It will be as though he never existed."

The foreign prince shrugged, "if you say so. So long as I end up ruling Camelot, I don't care how it happens or what you have to do in your personal quest for revenge." Oswald turned to face the table and unrolled one of the maps.

Prince Oswald was the fifth son of a king in a small kingdom across the sea. There was very little chance he would ever rule his own land. So he set out on a journey to make his own kingdom. When he ran into the powerful sorcerer with an aim to kill a king but not rule a kingdom, he snatched up the opportunity. Mordred would cast his spell to make Camelot vulnerable, and Oswald would take his men in, kill the royal family, and gain the throne. In Camelot, no less! A kingdom with far more prosperity, wealth, and influence than the small kingdom his father ruled. Mordred would get his revenge and Oswald would get a kingdom.

Mordred's only request was for Oswald to take Arthur alive so that the former druid would have the pleasure of killing the king himself. Mordred was too weak to participate in the attack so he demanded that their force bring Arthur to him. Oswald was happy to comply. He didn't care how Arthur died so long as Oswald ended up with Camelot.

With Emrys out of the way, it would be child's play for Oswald's knights and Mordred's sorcerers to overthrow Camelot's defenses. But if Emrys was there… Oswald had heard stories of the warlock. He was not a man that the prince ever wanted to encounter in battle. "You are sure Emrys has been taken care of?"

"Yes. Emrys is finally gone. It is time for phase two. Arthur will be dead by the end of the week. Morgana will be avenged. And the Pendragon line will be eliminated, once and for all." Mordred sighed and closed his eyes. He did not regret casting the spell, but it was tiresome to feel so weak. He had barely been awake for an hour and he already needed to rest again. "Leave me," he commanded as he drifted off to sleep.

Oswald couldn't help but be impressed by Mordred's level of trust in him. It wouldn't take too much effort to finish the magic user as he slept. If Oswald killed the former druid and freed the goddesses, he wondered if they would owe him a favor. Having a goddess in your debt sounded handy. But on the other hand, if they thought he was in on their captivity, it might end poorly for him. No, best he let Mordred stay in control of them.

The prince left to go prepare his men for the attack on Camelot.

The goddesses watched the exchange from their own plane of existence. "Can you believe that…. mortal," Morta said, unable to think of an insult appropriate. "He thinks he can control us. Use us! When we break free, I will show him suffering like he has never seen before! Fate is not for him to control!"

"And he does not," the much calmer voice of Aeternitas responded. "He was only allowed to access the power that we released. All is as it should be."

"I know that!" Morta snapped. "But I don't like being used, even if it has been written by fate. I'm supposed to be determining fate, not being an actor within it, like some kind of human. It's humiliating."

Aeternitas chuckled in amusement. "It is rather poetic, is it not?"

"Poetic! I'll show you poetic!"

"Our captors will not go without punishment. You know this as well as I. If I were you, I'd sit back and enjoy the show. It will be amusing at the very least. I, for one, cannot wait to see the look on Mordred's face when he realizes what has happened."

"Have I ever told you how much I hated optimists," Morta muttered.

Aeternitas chuckled but did not answer. Everything was going exactly to plan.

Author Note:

New Chapter up! It's only been 6 months. So sorry.


	12. Chapter 12: Joie de Livre

**Joie de Livre**

 _Future_

Merlin sighed and pushed the book away from him. While he loved the fact that he could freely study magic, he was getting tired, frustrated and bored.

Early that morning, Arthur woke him up in order to order him to begin searching through the magic books and scrolls to find some spell that might help reverse what had happened. When he found out he would get to spend the day looking through books of magic, he had been thrilled. To devote an entire day to magic seemed too good to be true. At first, he reveled in the freedom that came from being able to flip through a magic book without needing to hide. Looking through the first book was wonderful and he gleefully flipped through the pages. Unfortunately, he kept getting sidetracked by many of the interesting spells and had to keep reminding himself that he was searching for something specific. On the second book, he was a bit better at staying on track as the novelty began to wear off. By the third book, he was getting frustrated. He hadn't found anything related to time travel at all. While the books were fascinating, he couldn't devote any time to studying them in detail and searching through every page looking for anything useful was getting tedious. Using magic to search through the books made it go faster, but it was still time consuming. After the fifth book, he was ready to throw them all out the window. His back and neck hurt from hunching over the table, his butt hurt from sitting on a hard bench for so long, and he was getting hungry.

It was nearly lunch time so he figured it was the perfect excuse to take a break and wander around the castle for a bit. He had never been very good at sitting still for long periods of time. He actually liked that his job as Arthur's manservant kept him on his feet and running around the castle all day. (Although he would never admit that to the prat. Wouldn't want him getting any ideas.) Thus, sitting around reading all morning was making him antsy. He needed to stretch his legs and do something physical for a bit.

His curiosity about this future was also eating at him. He wanted to see what was different but hadn't been allowed to go off by himself yet. Arthur had specifically said that Merlin was not to go anywhere alone. But Merlin was hungry and he knew where the kitchen was. Lunch was the perfect excuse to get away from the books for a while. He was sure the king did not expect the warlock to starve. Merlin was certain Arthur would understand the need to eat. After all, Merlin knew that Arthur had a great appreciation for food; the king's belt could testify to that fact.

Merlin would just have to be careful not to be caught wandering the halls. He would use the excuse of food to allow himself a bit of exploration. It might be a problem if he was caught somewhere that was not near the kitchens, but he could pretend to get lost or something. He would blame the time difference. State that they redecorated and it threw him off. It was a flimsy excuse, but sometimes, it was a big advantage to be considered an idiot. Although based on what everyone had told him last night, nobody considered him an idiot anymore. His excuses that relied on his supposed foolishness and Arthur's real obliviousness were probably not going to work. Oh well, it wouldn't hurt to try.

And even if he did just go straight to the kitchens and back, the brief walk would be a nice break. He stood up and stretched. His mind made up, he walked towards the door. As he reached for the handle, the door opened. He took a slight step back in surprise as he found himself facing a man holding a tray of food. The man had dark, slightly curly hair and dark brown eyes. Merlin vaguely recognized him as the knight that reported to Arthur with Leon the previous night. He couldn't recall if he caught the man's name.

"I brought you some lunch," the knight said.

"Oh," Merlin said. His face fell. "Great. Thanks." Drat. Now there was no reason to leave the room.

"You don't sound very grateful," the knight said, amusement coloring his tone. He walked in to the room and set the tray on the table. Merlin watched as he stacked a few books and put them off to the side to clear two spaces.

"Sorry. I am. It was thoughtful."

The knight turned to him Merlin with a raised eyebrow and quirked lips. "But?"

Merlin winced and then sighed. "But, I'm not used to sitting still for so long. I was hoping for a chance to wander down to the kitchens myself."

"I know," the knight said, "and so does the king. Which is why he thought it would be a good idea for me to bring you food so you don't wander off." The knight turned back to the table and set out two plates with food.

Merlin huffed and crossed his arms. "I do not 'wander off.' Why does everyone keep saying that?"

The knight grinned. "The kings words, not mine."

"Of course it is," Merlin muttered.

"Now that I'm here and brought lunch, would you care to join me?" He gestured to the two meals.

Merlin sighed. "Sure." He walked to the table and sat at one of the place settings. The knight also sat and took a bite of sausage. Merlin watched the knight for a moment before also starting to eat. They ate in silence for a couple of minutes as Merlin tried to figure out who this knight was. Merlin guessed the knight was around his age. (His current age, not his future age.) Merlin tried to remember all of the names and descriptions that he had learned last night, but there was too much to go through. This knight seemed to have some familiarity with Merlin and didn't seem uncomfortable at his sudden age change.

"So," the knight said, breaking Merlin out of his thoughts, "time travel, huh?"

"Apparently," Merlin said.

"That's incredible."

"It would be more incredible if I were allowed to leave the room."

"You're allowed to leave the room."

Merlin raised an eyebrow. "You were told to bring me lunch so I wouldn't leave the room."

"The king is just worried about you."

"Worried about me? Arthur? Are you sure we're talking about the same king?"

The knight smiled but didn't respond, choosing to take another bite of his meal instead.

"So how did you end up with babysitting duty?" Merlin asked him.

"Well, you looked after me since I was seven. I figured it was time to return the favor."

"Oh," Merlin said, staring at the man before him. Now that he was looking, he could see some resemblance to Lancelot. His gut twisted a bit at the thought of his friend, but he pushed that aside. "So you're Galahad?"

"That's me," Galahad said.

Merlin suddenly wondered how Galahad was taking all of this. Until yesterday, Merlin didn't even know that Lancelot had any family left. And now the warlock was sitting with his future ward. It was a bit surreal. He was having a hard time processing it. He wondered what it would be like if it was him bringing dinner to a younger Gaius. He would be bursting with questions for his mentor. But this knight was incredibly restrained.

"Aren't you curious about me?" Merlin asked. "If I was in your shoes, I wouldn't be able to contain my questions."

Galahad grinned. "Oh, I'm curious. And I do have a lot of questions. But I figured that this would be pretty overwhelming so I didn't want to push you."

"Oh." Merlin snorted. "You are way more considerate to me than I would be to Gaius."

"Well, I've known you for longer than you've known Gaius."

"Which is really weird considering I've just met you."

"Yeah, but I've known you for twenty-one years. I grew up with you. So I probably have less questions. And you've always been really open with me about everything. I know a lot of stories from your past. You were nearly an adult when you met Gaius. Plus, he probably couldn't safely talk about a lot from his past."

"True," Merlin said. He looked down at his plate. His chest tightened and a wave of grief washed over him. Merlin craved the old physician's advice. He didn't know if he could find the answer without his old mentor. But Gaius was gone, and had been for a long time. Merlin knew that Gaius would be there when he got back, but being here opened Merlin's eyes to the realization that the old man would not be around forever. Someday, Merlin would lose him permanently.

"You're not alone, you know," Galahad said, interrupting Merlin's thoughts.

"Hm?" Merlin asked. He looked up and met Galahad's warm, brown eyes. He suddenly felt like he was staring at Lancelot. He mentally shook his head. He didn't need to deal with that grief, too.

"You're not alone. We will all do whatever we can to help you get back where you belong."

Merlin sighed. "Thanks," he said. He glanced down at the plate. It was mostly empty. If he was done eating, than nothing was keeping him from getting back to work. He sighed. "I guess in order to do that I need to get back to the spell books."

"Do you want help?" Galahad asked.

Merlin was surprised. "Do you know magic?"

"No, but I learned how to read it. Growing up with you, it was hard not to pick up a few things. I can't do magic but I might be able to help you find a spell in your book that may be useful."

"That would be great. Olwen helped me get set up this morning after breakfast, but the she had to spend the day preparing for tomorrow's festival and feast. I've been on my own all morning and I'm getting a bit bored." He frowned. "But don't you have training, or patrols, or other knightly type stuff to do."

"Nah," Galahad said. "I trained this morning. I'm all yours this afternoon."

"So Arthur did send you to babysit me."

"Don't think of it as babysitting. Think of it as lending a helping hand."

"Well I can't complain about that." Galahad put the empty plates on the tray and then stuck it on the floor outside the door to be picked up by a servant later.

Merlin organized the books into a few different piles, explaining his system to Galahad as he worked. "These books haven't been searched yet." He put them into two stacks. One stack had six books and one had seven.

"That doesn't look too bad," Galahad said. "We should be able to go through them by this evening."

"That's just one shelf," Merlin said. "According to Olwen, we should also look through those five shelves."

"Ah," Galahad said. "I see." He looked at the other shelves. Each shelf had twenty to twenty-five books. "Well, at least it's not the whole library."

"You're an optimist, aren't you?"

"Life is happier when you look at the positive side of things."

Merlin snorted. "Life is happier when you don't have to search through a hundred books."

"I thought you liked to research magic."

"I do. I also like it when the answer is in the first book."

Galahad chuckled. "Nothing worth having comes easy."

"You sound like Gaius," Merlin said. He shook his head and pointed to the five books he finished before lunch. "Anyway, this stack has books that I've gone though. They don't have anything useful." He pointed to an empty spot on the table. "This stack is for books that may be helpful."

"There are no books there," Galahad pointed out.

Merlin made a face. "I know. That's the problem."

Galahad snorted. "I guess we better get started, then." They both sat and grabbed a book.

After about forty-five minutes, Merlin thought he found something. "Wait a minute," he said, "Look at this." Galahad pushed aside the book he had been reading and glanced at where Merlin was pointing.

"What is it?"

"It's some sort of transportation spell. It looks like I've used it before."

"You recognize it?" Galahad asked.

"No, but I recognize my handwriting. I took notes." He read the notes that his future self wrote and his eyebrows shot up. "That could be a problem."

"What?"

"This spell is meant to transport a person instantly from one location to another. But apparently, as it is written, it _only_ transports the person. It doesn't transport anything that they are carrying. Or wearing."

Galahad also rose his eyebrows. "I would love to hear how you figured that one out."

Merlin wasn't sure if he should grin or grimace. "I just hope nobody was around when I did. I can't imagine Arthur being too pleased if I magically appeared in the throne room without any clothes on. With my luck, it would have happened in the middle of a feast."

"I'm sure I would have heard about it if that were the case."

"It looks like I've been trying to alter it so that it transports my clothes, too." He scanned the notes. His future self wrote various adaptations to the spell and then detailed descriptions of how it worked. In one case, it transported only his clothes without him in them. Another alteration transported himself and his clothes, but the clothes were no longer on his body. Other alterations allowed him to wear one or two articles of clothing. The list of alterations went on. Merlin flipped the page and saw one final alteration starred and underlined. This one seemed to work. "It looks like I finally figured it out."

"Do you think this spell will help you?" Galahad asked.

"I don't know. It transports a person from one place to another. I wonder if it can be altered to transport from one time to another."

"Hopefully with your clothes."

Merlin grinned. "I'll probably modify the version that future me underlined." Merlin studied the words. Even if it didn't get him home, it sounded like it could be useful, anyway. With all the trouble that seemed to find him, having a quick escape would come in handy.

"Do you know how you would alter it?" Galahad asked.

"No idea. Olwen might know." Merlin sighed and looked back at the large stack of books. "We should probably keep searching, just in case."

Merlin flung open the door to the king's chambers. Arthur looked up from his desk as the former manservant stomped into the room. "I cannot believe I'm about to say this," Merlin said as he headed towards Arthur, "but I need you to polish something. I'm going crazy after sitting around doing nothing but research for the past ten hours. Do you have any idea how hard it is to sit still for that long?"

"You like to read," Arthur said.

"Yeah, sure," Merlin replied, "one book. Maybe two." I just spent the entire day in a cramped room reading an entire library!"

"That room is hardly cramped, Merlin," Arthur said, "It's twice the size of the physician's quarters."

"Well it feels cramped when I'm not allowed to leave it!"

"Yes," Arthur sighed and leaned back. "Where is Galahad, by the way?"

Merlin winced. "He, ah, went to fetch us dinner."

"And you snuck out while he was gone."

Merlin's slightly guilty expression was the only confirmation Arthur needed. "Merlin, there's a reason you can't go wandering around the castle. Especially alone."

Merlin groaned. "Why not? I _can_ take care of myself you know. I've been doing it for years."

"Yes, you are obviously an expert at staying out of trouble. You never, I don't know, end up lost in time?"

Merlin shot Arthur an unamused look. "That's different. That wasn't my fault."

"Exactly," Arthur said, "and I can't take the risk that you will find more trouble that isn't your fault."

Merlin sighed but couldn't exactly argue that point.

"Have you at least found anything useful?" Arthur asked as he gestured to a chair.

Merlin flopped down in the chair with another sigh. "No. I thought maybe I found something that could be adjusted to help us. I showed it to Olwen when she stopped by earlier but she said it wouldn't work. Something about the collision of laws of nature and magic." Merlin shrugged, he tried to understand her explanation but it went over his head. "I don't know." He shook his head. "I'm exhausted, and frustrated, and feeling completely useless. None of those book seem to have any answers. I need…" He trailed off.

"Need what?" Arthur asked leaning forward. "If there is something you know of that can help, we can get if for you."

Merlin regarded him solemnly. "I need Gaius."

"Ah." Arthur leaned back. "I know the feeling." Arthur paused trying to find the right words. "I trained my entire life to one day be king. When that day came, I was still unprepared. I would have done anything to be able to get advice from my father."

"I know." Their eyes met as shared grief and an understanding of the heaviness of duty and responsibility passed between them.

After a moment, Merlin looked down. "Is this what my life is like in the future? All my days spent with my nose in a book?" He glances up again and his lips twitch slightly. "Does this mean I end up as fat as you?"

"Merlin!" Arthur yelled. "I am _not_ fat!"

"That's how it happened with you," Merlin went on, ignoring Arthur's indignant protests, "you became king and started spending more time at your desk and at feasts, and less time on patrols and training. It's only reasonable you would gain a bit of weight. I just never thought it would happen to me." Merlin grinned as he dodged the empty goblet that suddenly found itself being launched at the warlock's head. "I'm going to need to start an exercise regime if I'm going to spend all my time reading instead of lugging around your armor all day."

"Well if it means so much to you, I'm sure my current manservant won't mind letting you scrub out the chamber pot and wash all my dirty socks."

Merlin made a face. "On second thought, maybe spending the day researching isn't so bad after all."

"I thought not. Well don't think you will get away with lazing about in your room tomorrow." He ignored Merlin's glare. "Tomorrow is the feast and you will be expected to make an appearance."

"I will? As a servant or…?"

"No. As a guest. You will be seated where you usually are: at the front table."

Merlin's eyes went wide. "What? In front of all those people?"

"Yes. Try not to make a fool of yourself if you can help it. Probably best if you avoided talking to anyone. Sit quietly, eat without slopping on yourself, and leave as soon as possible."

"Sounds fun."

They were interrupted by a knock on the door. "Enter," Arthur called.

Galahad opened the door and nodded his head at Arthur in a small bow. "Sire," he said. He glanced at Merlin, "I thought you might be in here."

Merlin winced. "Sorry I disappeared on you."

Galahad shrugged, "I can't say I'm surprised. Do you still want dinner?"

"I think we could all use dinner. I was about to join Guinevere and the children in the great hall. You can both join us."

"Your children?" Merlin asked as the three of them walked through the corridors.

"What other children would I have dinner with?"

Merlin shrugged. "I don't know if Constantine would like being called a child. Especially considering he just finished that silly quest you royals do to prove your manhood."

Arthur scowled at Merlin's description of the noble tradition. "He is my child. That will never change. And that 'silly quest,' as you put it, is an ancient and sacred rite that goes back generations. If he did not embark on that journey, he would not be able to prove to the people that he was fit to rule."

"You honestly think the people care about the crown prince going on a foolish errand by himself?"

"It is not foolish!"

"I bet you five gold pieces that most of your people don't even know about it."

"Of course they know about it. The knights spend the months leading up to it helping the prince to train."

"Okay, let me rephrase. I bet you five gold pieces that most of the _common_ people don't know about it. And those that do know about it probably think it is as stupid as I do."

"Merlin," Arthur warned.

"Shut up?" Merlin suggested.

"Yes." The king glanced at Galahad. The knight's face was respectfully blank, but Arthur knew him well enough to know that he was probably laughing at them silently. The knight was just too polite to ever do anything that could be considered disrespectful.

They approached the entrance to the great hall and Arthur turned to face Merlin. "Remember the story we are using. The children don't know the truth and you need to try to pretend to be your older self. This will be good practice for tomorrow. Don't screw up."

With those encouraging words, the three of them entered the hall.

Author's Note: I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I had a hard time getting it to the point where I liked it, which is why it is so late. By the way, the title of this chapter is a play on words, not a misspelling. :)

I used my own reaction to writing papers as a model for Merlin's attitude towards research. I love to learn and I hate cleaning. But when I have a paper due I suddenly find it urgent to clean the kitchen, wash the dishes, vacuum, etc. My house is never cleaner than when I have schoolwork to do. Being in a graduate program has done wonders for the state of my apartment. :)


	13. Chapter 13: The Rumor Mill

Chapter 13: The Rumor Mill

 _The past_

Arthur strode down the stone stairs to meet Merlin, Gwaine, Percival, and Gaius as they entered the courtyard.

"Did you find anything?" Arthur asked as they dismounted.

"Actually, yes." Merlin said. "Gaius and I will have to do more research but we have a clearer picture of what cause all this." He waved his hand in a vague gesture.

"Excellent." Arthur said. "Gwaine, Percival: find Leon, Elyan, and Gwen, and then meet us in the council chambers. I want…"

But before he could state what he wanted, a small blur raced passed him and launched herself at Merlin.

"Papa!" She squealed in delight.

"Oof," Merlin said as he caught her. "You're getting heavy! Did you raid the kitchens with Gwen while I was gone?"

Kessa frowned. "Papa!" She scolded. "It's rude to mention a lady's weight." The girl glanced towards Gwen who had followed the little ball of energy at a slightly more sedate pace. Kessa shook her head and crossed her arms. "Men," she said to the queen.

Gwen bit her lip and smiled at Merlin before looking back at his daughter. "I know," she said. "They can be a bit obtuse sometimes."

Kessa nodded sagely, "But we love them anyway."

Gwen laughed, "Yes, we do." She kissed her husband's cheek who frowned at the two of them.

"And we are most grateful for that, my lady," Gwaine said to Kessa as he gave the child a dramatic bow and took a knee in front of her. "And I apologize on the behalf of all men at any offence."

Kessa giggled at the knight. "Apology accepted. You may kiss my hand." She flung out her hand, nearly bopping the knight on the nose as she did so.

"Mwa!" Gwaine said, making an exaggerated kissing noise on her hand. Then he looked up at Merlin and raised his eyebrow. "Just what are you teaching her, mate?"

Merlin snorted, "I think she's been spending too much time spying on Igraine and some of the other court ladies."

"I have to!" She defended herself. "I'm certainly not going to learn how to be a lady from _you_!" She paused and frowned. "Although a lot of what they say and do really don't make much sense."

"Good." Merlin said. "I hope it continues to not make sense for very, very long time." He grinned at Gaius' chuckle.

She frowned. "Why?"

"Because the day it starts making sense is the day I will have to request permission to indiscriminately borrow some of the more secluded sections of the dungeon." Kessa scrunched up her face as she tried to puzzle out what he meant.

Gwaine laughed, "With you as her father, and us as her uncles, I don't think you'll need the dungeons."

"Wait a minute! Are you saying you're going to lock me in the dungeon?!" Kessa exclaimed

"Not you, Kes," Merlin said ruffling her hair, "a little bird like you should never be caged. The dungeon is for the boys."

Kessa cocked her head to the side. "What boys?"

"All of them."

"All of them? In the whole kingdom?"

"Yep."

"I don't think they'll all fit," Kessa said, thinking about it.

"I'm sure we can make it work."

"Igraine?" Arthur asked. It was strange thinking of Merlin as an overprotective father against his daughter's suitors. So he latched on to the one part of the conversation that he cared to think about. Igraine was his mother's name. But obviously in the future, there would be another lady at court by that name. Did that mean what he thought it meant?

"Your oldest daughter," Merlin said.

"My oldest daughter? Does that mean I have more than one daughter?" Merlin smiled but didn't respond. "Merlin!"

"I'd hate to ruin the surprise," Merlin said. Arthur narrowed his eyes but before he could respond, Percival spoke up.

"Sire," he said, "perhaps it would be better to continue this conversation in private." He glanced at the crowd that had gathered and was currently making no effort to hide their eavesdropping.

"Yes," Arthur said, he shot out a glare that sent the people scurrying. "Let's adjourn to the council chambers. Percival? Gwaine?"

"We'll find the others and meet you there," Percival said.

Once everyone gathered in the Council chambers, Merlin provided an edited version of what had happened. He described the dark magic that had descended on the glade, but glossed over his role in fixing it. Instead, focusing on the points that he knew would hold Arthur's attention. He was grateful that the two knights that had been with him did not find it necessary to describe just how much magic Merlin had used earlier that day.

Arthur leaned back in his chair after hearing their tale, his brow furrowed in thought. "You're sure that the magic originated from the future?"

Merlin nodded. "Positive, sire."

"And you are sure you can trust your…source?" Arthur had seen many strange things over the past several years, but talking trees was a pushing his limits.

"Absoulutly. I don't believe trees are capable of lying."

"Of course not," Arthur deadpanned. He sighed and rubbed his hand over his face. "Okay. So ignoring how you got your information for a moment, you are telling me that a sorcerer from the future sent a spell to this time to kill you in your past."

"Magic is capable of such a feat?" Leon asked.

"So it would seem," Merlin said.

The knights glanced at each other, shifting uneasily. If their enemies were capable of such a spell, they could be in a lot of trouble. Arthur feared what someone like Morgana might do with that type of power.

"Have you ever heard of this being done before?" Arthur asked.

"No," Merlin replied.

"Nor I, sire," Gaius added.

"How much power would this sort of thing take?"

"An inordinate amount, sire," Gaius told him. "If we were not witnessing the effects first hand," he nodded at Merlin, "then I would not have believed such a thing to be possible."

"Then this must stay between us." Arthur looked around the table, making sure to make eye contact with each of them. "If this were to get out, it could give our enemies ideas. I shudder to think what would happen should Morgana get a hold of such a spell."

The others nodded; all of them thinking of the devastation she would be able to do with a spell like that.

"But there's one thing I don't understand," Elyan said. "Why Merlin? I mean, no offense, but if someone wanted to hurt Camelot, why not hit the king or queen? Merlin does not make much strategic sense."

Merlin's mind went blank as he tried to think of a believable answer that would not result in execution or banishment. Before he could come up with something, Gaius responded to Elyan's comment.

"Merlin has said that he has taken over as court physician," Gaius said. "While I am not trying to inflate the importance of my own position, as court physician, we have direct access to the royal family and can impact the health of the entire kingdom. Perhaps someone was attempting to get Merlin out of the way in order to ensure someone else got the job. Or perhaps he managed to save the king or stop a plague, or any number of things our enemies might object to. It is possible someone want to get him out of the way before he could accomplish such a thing." Merlin caught Gaius' eyes and nodded almost imperceptibly, grateful for Gaius covering for him once more. And doubly grateful that this time, the excuse did not involve taverns.

"But it still stands that killing Arthur in the past would be a more logical choice for such an enemy," Leon said.

"Maybe the spell went awry," Percival said.

"Or maybe it was a jilted lover of Merlin's," Gwaine suggested with a smirk.

Merlin snorted and rolled his eyes. But before he could retort Elyan spoke up, "No. That would be the reasoning if this happened to you, Gwaine." A few chuckles met that comment.

"We won't truly know the reasoning until we fix this and get Kessa and I back to our own time. Then we can track down whoever cast the spell and make sure they don't do such a thing again," Merlin said.

"If the goal was to kill Merlin, and Merlin is now in the same time as the assassin, doesn't that put him in danger?" Gwen asked, looking at Merlin in concern.

"Yes," Arthur said grimly. "Even if it did not kill him outright, it did put him within easy reach for a second attempt." Arthur looked at Merlin. "We need to switch you back."

"I know." Merlin said, nodding.

"How?" Leon asked.

Merlin closed his eyes and took a deep breathe. "I'm afraid I don't know. The spell was designed to kill. If my past self had not been next to that tree, it probably would have succeeded. I'm not entirely sure that we can easily replicate the conditions to switch back in the same way."

"We will need to do quite a bit more research into the matter, sire," Gaius said. "It will probably take time."

Arthur nodded. "Then you best get started."

Merlin and Gaius spent most of the evening and much of the following day trying to research ways to fix their problem. It was slow going as they were constantly interrupted by an energetic, bored six year old. Things went a bit faster after Gwen graciously offered to entertain the young girl. By midafternoon, the two healers realized that the answer would not be found in any of Gaius' books.

Merlin sighed as he pushed away the last book and massaged his temples. Gaius raised an eyebrow and looked up from his reading.

"I take it that you have found nothing."

"Unless switching us back requires knowing one hundred uses for serket venom, then this book is not going to help us."

"Mm. There does not seem to be anything helpful in this one either."

"That was the last of your books, wasn't it?" Merlin asked.

"Unfortunately, yes. Most of the books that could have been most useful were destroyed in the purge."

They were silent for a moment as they both thought of their next move. "Do you remember the goblin?" Merlin asked Gaius.

Gaius raised an eyebrow at the abrupt change in the topic. "Yes, unfortunately. I rather wish I didn't."

Merlin smirked slightly but continued, "I remember finding it in a sealed room in the library. Perhaps There are some books there that could be helpful."

"I seem to recall that room being sealed for a reason, Merlin."

"Desperate times, Gaius."

Gaius sighed, "You're right. There could be something in there. There also may be something in the vaults. As you know, not everything from the purge was destroyed completely."

"Yes," Merlin said, a hint of bitterness in his voice. "Some things were kept to demonstrate Uther's power over magic. The hypocrite."

"Careful Merlin. Don't let Arthur hear you. Uther was the king."

"He was never my king," Merlin stated.

"No," Gaius said, his lips twitched and he felt a surge a pride for the powerful warlock who was like a son to him. "No, your loyalty has only ever belonged to one king."

Before Merlin could reply, the door burst open and Kessa bounded into the room and launched herself at Merlin to give him an enthusiastic hug.

"Papa, Papa, Papa!" She squealed.

"Kessa, Kessa, Kessa!" Merlin mimicked.

"The Queen got me a new dress to wear for the feast and she said that she would help me with my hair and that I can get ready with her! Can I go? Can I? Can I?"

After taking a few seconds to decipher the excited and rapid speech, Merlin glanced to Gwen. "You bought her a dress? You didn't have to do that."

"Of course I did. She can't wear her play clothes to the feast."

"I didn't think we'd go." Merlin admitted.

"But I want to go!" Kessa protested. "Please!"

Merlin winced. ""I wanted to keep a low profile. I didn't want too many people to notice you," he explained to his daughter.

"It's too late for that, I'm afraid," Gwen said. "You both are the topic of almost every conversation I've overheard today.

"We're popular!" Kessa said, looking quite pleased with the revelation.

Merlin looked less pleased.

"It might be good for you both to make an appearance. Staying hidden will only make the gossip worse; you know that. Once people see you both enough, you will lose their interest," Gwen said.

"It's not the people's interest I'm worried about," Merlin said.

Gwen nodded in understanding. "I noticed the attention on Kessa earlier," she said. "I've asked Arthur if he could assign some knights to watch out for her. Elyan, Percival, and Gwaine all volunteered to take turns being her personal bodyguards while you both are here. Don't worry Merlin, none of us will let anything happen to either of you. You both have the protection of the crown."

That would be a help but enemies had gotten past the knights before. Especially in this time when there was very little magical protection on the citadel. But perhaps Merlin could sneak down to the great hall before the feast started and add a few protections of his own.

"You're right, Gwen. Hiding will only cause people to speculate on their own which will no doubt result in a lot more unpleasant rumors." He turned to his daughter and ruffled her hair. "And I'd hate for you to miss both your birthday picnic and the Solstice feast. But Kessa," he bent his knees so that he was on her level. "You need to remember that you should not do any magic under any circumstances."

"Yes, Papa. I remember."

He kissed her forehead. "Good girl," he said. He stood up. "Now go get ready with the queen. Once the two of you are through primping, you'll be the prettiest girls there. No contest."

Kessa giggled as Gwen took her hand and led her out of the room. As the door closed, Merlin and Gaius could hear Kessa already regaling the queen about some of the adventures she had with her father in the "real Camelot."

"The queen is right, you know." Gaius said. "The knights won't let her out of their sight. And I know you will stick close by her all evening. And I, too, will keep my old eyes open for anything that could go amiss. Now that we know that the attack originated from your time, the threat level on you, Kessa, and Arthur is significantly less."

"I know. I just worry."

"You're a father. I would be concerned if you did not worry. But you cannot let your worry rule you."

"No," Merlin agreed, "but I can be careful." He stood up and made toward the doorway.

"Where are you going?" Gaius asked.

"To add my own layer of protection to the feast. I'll just add a few wards to the Great hall and the entrances. I'll cast a spell that will alert me immediately if anyone enters the citadel with ill intentions."

"Be careful. If anyone should catch you using magic…"

"I know, Gaius. I won't get caught."

"See that you don't. You aren't the only one who worries about their children, you know. No matter how old they may be."

Merlin smiled at Gaius, warmed by the sentiment. "I'll be careful," he promised.

As the afternoon wore on, a young man rode through the woods outside of Camelot. When he reached an old, dilapidated cabin, he dismounted from the horse and knocked on the door.

"Enter," a voice called from within.

He did so and kneeled before a young woman dressed in black, sitting before a fire. "My lady," he said.

"What news of Camelot?" she asked.

"You asked me to keep an eye on the king and those closest to him, including his manservant."

"I know what I asked," Morgana snapped, losing what little patience she already had. "If you are here, than I assume you have something to report. If not, you will regret wasting my time."

He bowed his head. "Apologies my lady. I do have unusual news. The manservant went into the woods on an errand for the physician. When he came back, he was changed."

The woman narrowed her eyes. "Changed how?" she asked.

"He was older, by a few decades. And he had a young girl with him. Rumor has it, some sort of magic occurred. The man that came back was the manservant from the future, and he brought his daughter with him."

"Impossible," the woman scoffed. "Time travel is mere fantasy."

"I would not believe it either had I not seen him with my own eyes. And I heard him interact with the girl while they were in the courtyard. She is most certainly his daughter."

Morgana was silent for a moment. Suddenly, her eyes flashed and the man was thrown against the far wall, held in place against it with magic. The woman stalked towards him, unsheathing a dagger and holding it to his throat. "If you are lying to me…" She added more pressure to the dagger, drawing a drop of blood.

"It is the truth, I swear it!" the man exclaimed.

She stared at him before turning away abruptly. The man fell to the floor in a heap. "If that is the case, then there must be a way to turn this to my advantage," she muttered. She turned back to the man. "Tell me everything."

Author's Note:

Wow, that only took a year to update. I had a hard time getting this chapter written. None of the characters wanted to talk to each other. And with school, I'm afraid I did nothing to dissuade their lack of cooperation.

But the good news is I finished all my coursework and now only have to do the dissertation. The bad news is I have to write a dissertation.


	14. Chapter 14: Some Things Never Change

**Chapter 14**

 **Some things never change**

Dinner with the Pendragon family was… awkward. For one thing, it was weird dining at the table with the royal family. Merlin once more felt completely out of place. Then there was the fact that there was a royal family at all. A few days ago, the only royals Merlin had to keep up with were Arthur and Gwen. Not that Merlin had to do much for Gwen. As a former maid, she was pretty much self-sufficient. But now Merlin was faced with a royal family of eight.

With the exception of Constantine, who had already seen Merlin, the children were not exactly subtle in their curiosity over Merlin's… condition. Gwen had apparently told them ahead of time that Merlin had some sort of mishap which resulted in a temporary de-aging. But this did not stop the younger royals from staring at him. Eventually Gwen scolded them for being rude. This caused them to stop staring, but they still continued to send Merlin surreptitious glances over their spoons. Eventually, the twins grew tired of simply staring at him, and began asking remarkably detailed questions about the effects of aging and de-aging magic. Many of the questions Merlin would not have even thought of to ask himself. It didn't take him long to realize that the two thirteen year old children seemed to have more knowledge about magic than he did. Attempting to answer their questions without giving himself away was tricky. He tried to deflect their questions as best he could, but based on the narrowed looks he received after doing so, he didn't think it was working. He could only be grateful that Arthur was never that perceptive, or he would have been burned at the stake in his first week in Camelot all those years ago.

Blessedly, the meal finally ended. Arthur stood up citing 'kingly duties' and bid Merlin to accompany him. Merlin was never so grateful to follow along behind his king.

Merlin sighed after the doors to the great hall closed behind them. "I'm glad that's over. Your guards could probably learn a thing or two about interrogation from your twins."

"They've always been smart," Arthur said. "Sometimes, a bit too smart for their own good." But despite his words, his face filled with a proud smile.

"Hm," Merlin said, "they must get it from Gwen."

"Funny," Arthur said, scowling at the warlock. Then he decided to change the subject before they got too off topic. "But anyway, the meal definitely could have gone worse. I think you were able to keep them from getting too suspicious. It was good practice for tomorrow evening."

Merlin wrinkled his nose at the thought. "Do I have to go? I don't particularly fancy being stared at through the entire feast."

"Too bad," Arthur replied, not sounding particularly sympathetic. "You'd better get used to it. You'll be sitting at the front table with me."

"I don't think that's a good idea. Couldn't I just serve drinks like usual?"

"There is nothing usual about you serving drinks. Not anymore. People would stare even more. We need to keep up appearances that you've only changed on the outside."

"I still think it's a bad idea."

"So you've said. There's a reason I don't pay you to think."

"You said I was your advisor. Being paid to think is pretty much in the job description."

"Shut up, Merlin."

The feast started out just as horrible as Merlin expected. Everyone stared unabashed. But instead of curious looks, the looks were more of amusement. Apparently, word had spread that Merlin had accidentally de-aged himself. The guests at the feast seemed to view the whole thing as part of the evening's entertainment. At the beginning of the feast, as guests were arriving and mingling, Merlin lost count of the number of people that came up to him to make some sort of teasing comment.

"At least you don't have feathers this time!" one rotund lord said, slapping Merlin on the back so forcefully that he stumbled. Merlin decided that he really didn't want to know.

In another corner, he saw a few men exchanging coins, apparently cashing in on a bet on how long it would be until the next magical 'incident.'

"Should I be offended?" Merlin asked Arthur later, when they were seated for the feast. "People are not only _not_ surprised to see me like this. It's almost like they expected it."

"Of course they did. This isn't the first time you managed to use magic in a ridiculous way."

"Oh, come on! I'm not incompetent!"

"No. You're not. You just have a tendency to experiment a bit. Sometimes it causes things to go a bit sideways. But that's not due to incompetence."

Merlin pouted a bit. "It doesn't sound like it."

Arthur sighed and lowered his voice so no one would overhear. "Merlin, most magical texts were destroyed and a significant portion of magical knowledge and understanding was lost in the purge. You have singlehandedly rediscovered a huge amount of what was lost. And you've improved on other things that were not lost. That kind of endeavor could not be undertaken by an incompetent man. But it also has its risks. Risks that you have always considered and mitigated. No one has ever been hurt by any of your experiments. Mostly, they just cause amusement when they go wrong. They fact that these people are amused and not scared should tell you something."

Merlin thought about it. Arthur was right. Merlin really should be grateful for good-natured teasing about his magic. It was a clear improvement from calls for execution. "You're right," Merlin said.

"Obviously," Arthur said, smiling at Merlin. "Although sometimes I have to wonder what the gods were thinking when they created you. They took an insatiable curiosity, mixed it with a penchant for leaping before looking, and gave it to the most powerful magic user of all time. That is just asking for trouble."

"Could be worse," Merlin replied. "They could have made me look like you."

Just as the second course was finishing, a strong wind blew through the hall, snuffing out all the candles and torches, plunging the room into darkness. The doors swung open and five men, robed in black and red, swept into the room, chanting.

The guards leapt forwards as knights reached for their weapons. The magic users in the room attempted their own counter spells, but it was too late. The robed intruders finished their incantation and red, glowing rope appeared around the arms of all those with magic in the room, including Merlin. Although Camelot's sorcerers struggled, they could not get their magic to respond to their commands.

Arthur jumped to his feet. Merlin tried to as well, but the bindings made him lose his balance and fall to the ground. He struggled to rise but Arthur motioned him to stay still. "Stay down," he mouthed. Merlin opened his mouth to argue but was silenced with a look. The three eldest Pendragon boys, Constantine, Thom, and Amhar took their places beside their father. While they were garbed for the feast, they each carried ceremonial swords, which they drew and held in front of them.

Arthur glanced over his boys. Thom and Amhar had not yet been tested in battle. He could see the fear in their eyes, but they both stood strong and steady, their faces determined. Pride flared up in him. He briefly caught their eyes and nodded.

As the older boys flanked their father, Gwen grabbed the two youngest and drew them close to her, backing further behind the table. Igraine grabbed a knife from the table and then rushed to their side. Gwen reached out to pull her close, too. "When you get the chance," Gwen whispered in her eldest daughter's ear, "Grab the twins and run." Igraines mouth thinned, the grip on her knife tightened, and she nodded once.

"Defend the king!" Sir Leon yelled, charging the attackers.

The knights and guards followed Sir Leon's lead. The enemy sorcerers lifted their hands. With a gold flash of their eyes, Camelot's defenders flew across the room, crashing into the tables, walls, and other guests. Another spell by the enemy sorcerers had all the guests of the feast frozen where they were. Arthur and the princes attempted to break free but they could not move a muscle.

The enemy sorcerers kept their hands raised, maintaining the spell. The doors opened again and a man in fine crafted armor, flanked by ten enemy knights strode into the room. The knights took position around the room while the first man approached the high table.

"King Arthur of Camelot. Tales of your greatness has reached me even across the sea. They say you have the strength of ten men. That you are the greatest swordsmen in all the world. That you have single-handedly defeated army after army. Yet you are taken out by our small band? It would seem the man does not live up to the legend. I have to say, I'm not impressed. Perhaps you are just getting old. Perhaps it is time for a younger, more capable ruler in Camelot."

"I suppose you believe yourself to be that man?" Arthur asked. He could hear Merlin murmuring incantations, trying to break the spell that bound him. From what Arthur could tell Merlin was not yet having much luck. Arthur realized he needed to keep this man talking to give Merlin more time.

"I suppose I am."

"Am I to know the name of my usurper?"

"I am called Prince Oswald."

"Well, I've never heard of you," Thom snapped. Arthur shot his son a disapproving glare. They needed to keep him talking, not make him mad.

Oswald narrowed his eyes at the prince. "Not yet. But after today. I will be known as the man who did what no other could. The man who conquered Camelot."

"Others have made such a boast," Arthur said. "And yet I remain on the throne."

"Others were fools. They tried to strike before removing Camelot's greatest defense. You may be king, but I know who held the real power in Camelot. Tell me, King Arthur," Prince Oswald said, placing mocking emphasis on the word 'king.' "Have you lost something? Or, should I say, someone?"

It took every ounce of self-restraint for Arthur to both keep a straight face and not to glance down at Merlin, who was still bound behind the table. Although he heard Merlin's struggling falter as what Prince Oswald said sunk in. Arthur could just imagine the wide-eyed look that Merlin sported.

"I don't know what you mean." Arthur said.

"I'm sure," Prince Oswald said. "But I grow weary of this conversation." He turned his back on the royals and addressed the frozen crowd. "Anyone who chooses to swear fealty to me this day will be rewarded with their lives." He waited. No one spoke. "Will no one honor me as their king?" He looked around the room. He was met with the faces of an angry and defiant crowd. A few even spit in his direction. Prince Oswald's face hardened. "Very well. Let it be known that I did give you this chance." He glanced at his men. "Kill them all. But remember, Arthur must remain alive." He turned back to Arthur. "An old friend very much wants to see you. He wants the pleasure of killing you himself." Oswald drew his sword and held it aloft. "But he said nothing of your family."

Prince Oswald swung the sword down on Prince Thom. The crowd gasped. The princesses screamed for their brother.

"NO!" Arthur, Gwen, Merlin shouted at once. Just as the sword was about the hit the prince, it flew out of Oswald's hands and plunged several inches into a pillar.

The room was silent, except for the relieved sobs of Gwen, the twins, and Igraine.

Oswald stared at the sword embedded in the pillar, where it was still quivering from impact. "How?" he asked in astonishment.

Suddenly there was a loud, SNAP! Merlin jumped to his feet. His arm extended and his eyes blazed gold. Oswald went flying across the hall, colliding into a table and sliding several feet across the top, knocking over dishes and goblets.

The enemy sorcerers faltered. "Emrys," one whispered, eyes wide with fright.

"No. Impossible!" Oswald said, scrambling to his feet and then backing away towards the magic users he came with. His knights shifted uneasily, not certain what to do but not wanting to risk further ire of the famous wizard.

Oswald pointed at Merlin, who moved around the table to stand in front of his king. "You're supposed to be dead!" Oswald shouted.

Merlin snorted. "I'm not as easy to kill as people like to think."

"What made you think Merlin was dead?" Arthur asked.

Oswald narrowed his eyes as he considered. "Let's say an old friend of yours assured me you had been taken care of. Clearly he was mistaken."

"Clearly."

"We'll have to remedy that." Oswald signaled the two knights closest to Merlin. They both rushed the warlock. Merlin's eyes flashed and they, too, flew across the room.

While Merlin dealt with the threat to his life, Oswald grabbed the sorcerer closest to him. "We've failed. Take us back," he said.

Merlin turned his attention back to Oswald, but before he could make another move, Oswald and the five enemy sorcerers disappeared in a gust of wind, leaving the 10 knights behind.

With the sorcerers gone, the spells on the royal family, knights, guards, and assembled guests were lifted. The knights and guards easily overcame the remaining enemies and dragged them off to the dungeons to await questioning.

Gwen rushed towards Thom and pulled him tight against her as she fussed over him.

"I'm fine, Mum. I'm fine."

"Oh, Thom!" Gwen cried. "I thought…" she trailed off, not able to finish the thought. "We nearly lost you!" she said.

"Are you alright, Thom?" Arthur asked, putting a hand on his son's shoulder.

"Yeah," Thom said. "At least I will be if Mum doesn't strangle me."

Gwen made a noise that was a half sob, half laugh, and eased up on her hug. But she could not yet bring herself to release him completely.

Arthur nodded and gave Thom a smile before turning to examine the rest of his family. "And the rest of you?"

"Unhurt," Constantine reported.

"We're okay," Igraine said. The other three royal children nodded.

With his family secure, Arthur turned to the rest of the assembly.

"I'm afraid that our festivities will have to be prematurely concluded. If anyone is hurt, please report to the physician or his assistant. Sir Galahad, I am leaving you in charge here. Please ensure everyone gets home safely." Galahad nodded and recruited some other knights and guards to start organizing the guests safely so that they could leave without any further injuries.

"Sir Leon, Merlin," Arthur said. "With me. I'd like to know exactly what our uninvited guests were up to."

"That spell binding me and my magic was strong. I nearly didn't break through in time," Merlin said as they walked towards the dungeon.

"But you did. That's what matters," Arthur said.

"The older me probably would not have had a problem with it though, would he?" Had felt completely useless during most of that attack. He wasn't supposed to be here and his lack of skill nearly got Arthur's son killed.

Arthur was silent for a moment, sensing the self-deprecating thoughts of his friend and searching for the right words before speaking. "I couldn't say," he finally said. "But he does have 25 years more experience than you. Don't be too hard on yourself."

"But I could have…" Merlin started but then Arthur turned, and grabbed Merlin by the shoulders, interrupting his sentence.

"Merlin, look at me." Merlin did so. "You did everything you could have. And _it was enough_. You saved my son. _Thank you_."

Merlin blinked. "You're welcome," he said after a pause.

They turned and joined Sir Leon who had stopped a few paces ahead to give them some semblance of privacy. All three continued to the dungeon.

"They thought you were dead," Leon said to Merlin after a moment. "They were all shocked to see you there."

"They must have been responsible for what happened to you," Arthur agreed.

"Maybe they can tell us what spell was used. Or at least who was behind it," Merlin said.

"They were abandoned here by their leader. Hopefully that will give them some incentive to share," Sir Leon said.

Just as they were approaching the dungeon, the door swung open and a guard rushed out.

"Sire," he said. "I was just coming to find you. We got the intruders set up in their cells. But then they all started convulsing, all at the same time. They're dead. Every one of them. Andras, he's another guard, sir, with magical training. He said it was a spell. Some sort of magical execution. Apparently some magic-folk have a spell to prevent their men from talking when captured."

Arthur cursed and pushed past the guard. Sure enough, each of the enemy knights were on the ground, dead. Merlin approached the closest one and knelt to examine him.

"The symptoms almost look like poison. But he's right. I do sense traces of magic on them."

"Damn." Arthur said. "Now we won't know who was behind this."

"You don't think it was that Prince Oswald." Merlin said.

Both Arthur and Leon shook their heads.

"The way he spoke, it sounded like someone else was pulling the strings. He said he needed to take the king back to someone else," Leon said.

Arthur nodded "A man like that is a scavenger. He will take opportunities when they arise but he doesn't have the intelligence to pull off something like this. Not when you take into consideration the time, effort, and skill that would be required to get rid of you."

"But they thought Merlin was dead," Leon said. "They know the truth now." Leon turned to address Merlin. "You are in more danger than you were before."

Arthur nodded. "We need to redouble our efforts to get you back home. We will need every magic user we can trust working on that. Olwen will have an idea of who would be best for the job. And Merlin, I want you with at least two knights at all times. You're safety has just become our number one priority."


	15. Chapter 15: History can be re-written

**Chapter 15**

 **History can be re-written**

Prince Oswald pushed himself away from the magic user as soon as they had transported back into the caves.

"What was that?" he demanded of them. He paced back and forth in front of them. "Emrys was supposed to be gone! Why was he there? I just lost some of my best men due to your incompetence!" He pointed an accusing finger at the sorcerer.

"Watch your tone," the sorcerer warned. "We are not responsible for _you_ abandoning your men."

Oswald narrowed his eyes, his hands twitched toward his sword. He had a strong desire to run them all through. But he was outnumbered and outmatched. He would not last long against five magic users. He reigned in his temper as best he could and then spat, "I would not have needed to do so if you had done your job to ensure that Emrys was truly gone."

"Mordred has never steered us wrong before," another sorcerer defended. "He told us that the warlock was taken care of and we had no reason to doubt his words."

"Then perhaps I should take it up with Mordred,"

"Be our guest," the first sorcerer said, gesturing with his open palm toward the open corridor.

Prince Oswald gave them a dirty look and then stormed through the caves towards Mordred's room.

The sorcerers watched him leave. "Fool," one said.

"I hope Mordred fries him like the chicken he is," another replied. "Mordred never should have allied with him."

"He has played his part," the first said. "Mordred needed him and his men. He better hope that Mordred still needs him."

. - . - .

Mordred sat in a cushioned chair in front of the fireplace. He absently rubbed a clear crystal between his fingers as he mused on what he had just seen through it. He had been watching the disastrous attack on Camelot. He had been surprised and then furious that Merlin had not been eliminated as he had previously thought. But as he stewed about that revelation, he realized that something was off about the whole thing. For one thing, Emrys' appearance was too young and he did not act in the way Mordred would expect the older warlock to act. Emrys should not have been bound by Mordred's sorcerers at all. Mordred could not quite decipher what it meant that he had been affected. Mordred was clearly missing something. So he sat, staring into the fire, trying to figure out what he was missing.

Mordred's thoughts were interrupted as the the door to his room flung open and Prince Oswald stormed through. Mordred watched from where he was seated in front of the fireplace as the irate prince marched up to him.

Oswald thrust his finger the Mordred's face, "Emrys was still there!"

Mordred swatted Oswald's hand away and glared. "I know. I saw in a scrying crystal."

"Why didn't you scry for him before we left? If you had such power, you should never have relied on that kitchen wench for your information."

Mordred sneered at the prince. "The only reason I could see what happened is because one of my sorcerers was wearing a matching crystal. The link between the two crystals allowed me to see what he saw. The magic came from the crystals themselves, not me. I'm unfortunatly still too weak to maintain a scrying spell of that magnitude for such a long period of time," he said, with some bitterness in his voice.

Oswald drew his sword, "if you're so weak, what's to stop me from killing you right now?"

Mordred scoffed at looked at the weapon in disdain. "And what would that accomplish? Killing me would not put you on the throne."

"What does it matter if Emrys is still alive? So long as he lives, I cannot overthrow Camelot. And you clearly are not a match against him, even with the power of a goddess."

Mordred decided that he had enough of the prince's insults. With a flash of his eyes, Oswald flew against the wall of cave, where his head collided with the stone with a smack. Oswald dropped to the floor, dazed. Mordred stood and slowly approached the prince. Oswald blinked up at him.

"I may be weaker than usual, but I still have the power to snap your neck like a twig. Make no mistake, the only reason you still live is because you may yet have use to me. I am willing to continue our agreement. However, if you prove yourself more trouble than you are worth, I am not against finding someone else to lead your men. Do you understand."

Oswald grit his teeth together. "Yes."

"Excellent." Mordred turned his back on the prince and went back to his chair. He sat back down, hating how much strength that small demonstration of magic took out of him. But he refused to show weakness in front of the hot-headed prince. "I've been thinking about what happened and I think we can still salvage the situation."

"How?" Oswald asked, standing up and rubbing his head.

"The goddesses, Aeternitas and Morta are the goddesses of eternity and death, respectively. I thought that their power would allow me to overcome Merlin's own eternal life."

"Then it seems even a god cannot kill an immortal."

"So it seems. But you failed to notice the obvious, Oswald."

"Obvious? What obvious?"

"Did you even look at Emrys? His appearance was so young. And he was unable to remove the binding spell on his magic until he experienced an extreme emotion. Had he been himself, such a spell would barely have an effect. And Emrys would never wait until the last minute to remove a threat if he was able to take care of it earlier. While we did not succeed in killing him, it seems we _have_ managed to weaken him."

"So what?" Oswald asked, "He was still strong enough to defeat my men."

"So…" Mordred sat back and stared into the flames as he thought. Mordred mentally repeated the spell that he had cast in an attempt to kill Emrys. He considered the goddesses that he had chosen. Perhaps they were the key. Goddesses of death, eternity, time… wait. Time. Mordred slowly started to verbalize he thoughts, thinking as he spoke, "I don't think they made him weaker, I think they made him younger. When we first met, he was inexperienced. He was ignorant about most magic and relied on instinct and raw power over control and discipline. Emrys has always been powerful, but he has not always known how to use that power. What if instead of killing him in the past, the spell somehow reverted him in age? What if he has regressed to a time in his life where he had no understanding of his true potential and very little control over his own power? If he has regressed to such a state, we can take advantage of that."

"How?" Oswald asked.

Mordred steepled his fingers in front of his face as he thought. Suddenly he realized something that had been bothering him about Oswald's encounter with the Pendragons and Merlin. "Did you see the girl anywhere?" he asked.

"Which girl?" Oswald asked. "It was a feast. There were lots of girls."

Mordred looked at Oswald like he was an idiot. "Emrys' daughter."

"I don't think so. But I wasn't looking for children."

"I didn't see her either. Our spy told us that both her and Merlin were missing."

"Clearly she was wrong. Emrys was _not_ missing."

"Unless he was."

"Are you suggesting that I imagined the humiliating defeat of me and my men?"

Mordred ignored the sarcasm. "The reason I chose to harness the power of Aeternitas was because she is the goddess of eternity and time. I thought her power would allow me to send a lethal spell backwards through time. What if the spell did not do what we originally thought. What if it brought a version of Emrys from the past into the present?"

"Time travel?" Oswald asked, skeptical.

"A goddess would be capable of such a thing. But if a younger version of Emrys is truly here, that gives us an opportunity. Perhaps this is a gift from the goddesses. If we have a past version of Emrys, we can potentially shape him to our way of thinking. We could change the course of history. We could get him on our side; show him all the wrongs he has done to our people. Teach him a better way. Then we use the goddesses again to send him back to his own time. He will ensure history happens the way we want it to. He will be able to prevent Morgana's death and bring justice for our people."

"Your people," Oswald scoffed. "I could care less what he does or does not do in the past, just as long as I still get my throne."

"Don't worry," Mordred said, "I'm sure if we convince him to join us, he will ensure that you are properly rewarded."

Oswald eyed Mordred. He held about the same amount of trust for Mordred as he would a cobra. But for the moment, Mordred was the only one capable of helping him acquire the power he desired. So Oswald would go along with Mordred for now. "Fine" Oswald said. "But how exactly do you convince him to do what you want in the past. He did not seem too eager to betray his king."

"When Emrys was young, he was naïve, trusting, and easily fooled. We can use such weaknesses to lure him to us. It won't be hard to get him alone. Send him a doe eyed girl or an innocent child with a sob story and he will be falling over himself to help them. They can lure him someplace private where our men will be waiting to catch him by surprise. Then he will be brought back here where he and I will have a little…chat."

"And if you can't persuade him?" Oswald asked.

"I know many ways of changing people's minds. Perhaps even the powers of the goddesses will prove useful in controlling his thoughts. But if that does not work, we kill him here. Even an immortal cannot live without his head attached to his body."

"And with the Warlock out of the way for good, Camelot will fall," Oswald said.

\- . - . -

Author's Note:

I would like to take the time to thank everyone who has been sticking with me despite the long intervals between updates. Your encouragement is greatly appreciated.


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